I'll be your James Dean, if you'll be my Audrey Hepburn
by AngelLeStrange101
Summary: "I'd kill for you, you're the only one who makes me feel complete. It doesn't matter what I've done in the past or currently, you've been there, often doing something madder than I could imagine. I love you, Ruka, I really do."- What starts off as a curious adventure for young burlesque performer Ruka, soon turns into a trial of love, lust and obsession with a certain red-head.
1. Chapter 1-Ruka

Chapter 1: Ruka

"Big sis! Are we gonna go hunting tonight?" Ikuto asked, his tall dark-haired frame asked looming above my coffin.

I cracked open one eye groggily and glared at his shining blue eyes. Some days I loved this boy I turned a few centuries ago, others I wanted to bury him under the crypt.

"For fucks sake Ikuto! It's 2pm!" I groaned, "Why are you up so early?!"

"I love my big sis!" he answered childishly, "And I'm hungry!"

"Eat one of the blood bank bags we've got in the freezer!" I mumbled, "Microwave it for a few minutes."

He grumbled a complaint and I rolled over in my coffin. I found Ikuto a few centuries ago, dying in a pit, he begged me to save his life and I did on the condition he'd be my servant. He's been useful, and the company hasn't been entirely unwelcome, but I hate having to be 'big sis'.

I checked my phone; March 21st, 2:05pm. Just a few more days and we'd be attending Ryoutei Academy, a prestigious night school, so we'd have an education for the first time in 50 years. New life, after our failure of the old, under the cover of high school students.

"Ikuto," I muttered and he looked up from the freezer, "remember what we discussed about this new school; under no circumstances must you reveal you are a vampire to a mortal, or drink from a student."

"I know sis," he sighed.

I rolled over again to get some sleep before work tonight.

7pm:

"Ikuto! It's time to go! The club opens in 2 hours!" I called from my dressing room in my burlesque club 'Noir Lounge'.

"I'm on the door tonight for the first hour, aren't I?" he called back.

"Yeah, then you're by the main stage for the rest of the evening," I explained, "Jiro is handling the special effects tonight and Caleb has the band sorted for the live music."

"Who's working the bar?" he asked as I fixed my suspender belt into my stocking.

"Our darling 'brother' Goro of course," I replied as I did the finishing touches to my naughty school girl costume and make up.

I recognised the stale and dull air of pre-show prep I'd conducted over and over again for centuries, but I grit my teeth and bore with it, because the stage is my freedom and escape, my voice was able to cast spells on the iciest hearts of mortal men, and I loved the thrill and the rush of having multiple lovers over the years, bending their wills and making their very souls crave me. But the pattern and routine was becoming less stimulating. The fire in my loins faded with each new prospect. The buzz and adrenaline rush was stagnating. This is the curse of immortality: boredom.

I no longer hunted with pleasure and thrills coursing through my veins, it was purely to satisfy the primal need of hunger. And living with my 'turned brothers' was becoming dull. Extending our little 'family' just to shake things up was just time consuming. I longed for something exciting. Something stimulating.

"Over 500 years old and still beautiful, sis," I heard Jiro's voice say from the doorway.

I rolled my eyes, "Learn to knock, asswipe."

"Love you too, sis," he said putting an arm around me into a friendly hug, "the smoke and lights are all set and the V.I.P area has the house champagne fully stocked up."

"You're a doll," I replied blowing a kiss, "are the other girls down in costume ready?"

"Cherry is complaining again, but that's nothing new," he answered, "this time it's because some rich high school boy dumped her."

"What's she doing dating a high school guy anyway?" I asked.

"Big money, big dick and big charm apparently," he shrugged.

"Mortals," I muttered.

"I can relate to the emotion in a way since I was in a similar situation while I was human, but with a woman, obviously," he commented.

"But we had fun burning her house down though," I chuckled.

"We did indeed," he snickered.

"Ruka!" Caleb called poking his head around the door, "Showtime in 20 minutes."

"Let's go," I smirked, grabbing my kitten heels.

"Knock 'em dead sis," Jiro said.

I laughed, "I've been running and dancing in this club ever since I was 20 years old, no-one knows the art of the tease better than me."

On the stage, the jazz numbers played and myself and my girls made the audience fall in love, lust and beg for more, even well past closing time. Eventually though, the curtain dropped and the spell was broken. My throat could rest from singing that night, and my only concern was getting past the 'admirers' in relative peace. One client from the V.I.P, a famous novelist named Tanaka was pretty insistent on taking me out for dinner, despite my teenage appearance. Tonight, was no exception.

"Come on babe," he pleaded from outside the door, "I could give you anything you wanted."

"I already have everything I could want," I replied, "I'm flattered by your affections dear, but I must decline. It's unprofessional, and I never mix business with pleasure."

Ikuto eventually got him to leave and we all returned to the crypt to sleep for the day. This had been my life for the greater part of over half a millennium, but my life would soon be shaken up out of its stale routine sooner than I expected. A great adventure was lurking around the corner that would affect my life and give me a thrill I never thought I'd experience again.

 **A new chapter coming soon. I am back at University for my 2** **nd** **year, I hope this chapter gives you a good tease of what Ruka's life is like and you'll stick around for the brother's appearance in the next chapter. :) Leave reviews and feedback, all comments are welcome and I love hearing the ideas of my readers.**


	2. Chapter 2-Laito

Chapter 2: Laito

We were riding in the limo as usual towards what would be the first day of our third year at Ryoutei. Bitch-Chan was sat next to Ayato, and he had his arm protectively around his little 'girlfriend'. I gazed out the window, bored and hungry. The air in the car was tense, we were all hungry, but bitch-chan's blood was won by Ayato, so we'd need to feed on our fellow students.

The only positive side to the situation: no Reiji or Shu. They graduated last year thankfully. I'd been feeding on the blood of a burlesque dancer the past few months, but her blood became tainted by lust; a common problem I encounter. We arrived on campus and the fan club greeted us as usual, but the school felt different. The atmosphere was invaded by an oppressive presence.

"We have some more vampires in the school it seems," I commented.

"More?" Ayato spat, "Aren't the Mukami's enough?"

"They're powerful…" Kanato mutters.

"Do you think they'll intrude on our hunting grounds?" Subaru asked as we made our way through the corridors.

"The presence is getting heavier, which means they're close by," I replied, "we could potentially ask them nicely."

"When has that ever been our style?" Ayato snorted.

"A presence this heavy…is it one of the founders?" Kanato asked, as we turned down an unused corridor.

"The founders?" a husky female voice chuckled, "Now there's something I didn't expect to hear on my first day of school."

We looked up and saw a silver-haired girl with peach eyes and a very curvaceous body stood on the stairs. She was surrounded by vampires she'd clearly sired. That could explain the strength of her aura.

"No need to worry," she continued, "my brothers and I have our own code of conduct and hunting grounds, we won't intrude on your territory."

"Hey, big sis," a dark-haired guy nudged her, "have we moved from one lion's den to another?"

"It appears we have my dear," she sighed, pouting.

"At least wolves don't perform in the circus," a brown hair guy sneered.

"You bastard!" Subaru snapped throwing a punch at the guy.

The others lunged at him, but before they could touch him they were flung back by an invisible force and the girl stood between them and Subaru.

"That's enough!" she glared at them, "I'll deal with all of you _later_."

Some of them looked scared, the others…excited? I was curious as to what would provoke such mixed reactions, but before I could question her, she was leading them away in the opposite direction. I stared after her, my curiosity aroused.

"She seems strange," Kanato commented.

Kanato calling someone strange? _Now_ I'm definitely interested…

At our late evening break, once I'd fed on a lonely fangirl, I discovered her in the library reading a fashion magazine, resting her heeled boots on a table in the corner of the room.

"Can I help you with something, dear?" she asked, without looking up from her magazine.

"I find you interesting, bitch-chan," I smirked, running my fingers up her leg, "I'm here to test the waters."

"Waters?" she laughed, shooting me a look that I found extremely seductive and alluring, "I'm more like fire; touch me, and you _burn_."

I purred with delight as I leaned in…only to stumble back at the aura that radiated from her at my approach. It was suffocating at this close proximity. Her piercing glare and cold smirk was the last thing I saw as the pain from her aura caused me to black out. I awoke in the infirmary, still feeling the arousal from the pain coursing through my body, and the school nurse looking down at me with a look of concern on her face. I gave her a smirk that made her blush. We'd been in this situation before. It didn't take much to please her, and after a few minutes, I'd worked some of the feeling out of my system, and left her panting in the office.

It's strange, it doesn't take much more effort to remove the feeling, but whatever it was she'd done, I was still reeling, and the bulge I felt downstairs proved it. Looks like myself and the entire household staff are in for a sleepless day today. Bitch-chan…you are one _hell_ of a woman…


	3. Chapter 3-Lust is a powerful thing

Chapter 3: Lust is a powerful thing

 **Warning! Heavy smut ahead!**

Most women, when they get their period, experience cramps, food cravings, poor skin, bleeding and mood swings for a week. For most vampire women, it's the same, no exceptions apart from the fact it's every six months instead of every month. Unless you're me of course. By some freak of genetic nature, when I get my 'period', there is no blood, cramps or poor skin (hooray), I do, however, go 'in heat'. Many vampires have asked me the same question; what's so wrong with being in heat? And every time, I've given the same response; it's because it's like you're dying of thirst, and there's an infinite amount of blood and water right in front of you to quench it, but you either never reach it or it doesn't aid your problem. It's pure agony.

That is why, for an entire week, my brothers spend every waking hour fucking me until I'm unconscious or drinking an infinite amount of blood bank bags. Then, once the heat has subsided, the residual hormones in my system make my singing and dancing at the club more appealing to our customers, and we rake in big money for the next six months before the vicious cycle starts anew. If they were able to please me physically, I know the afterglow would be more enchanting than ever. But, alas, they suck at sex. Thrusting in and out of a vagina, isn't the only thing you can do. I've had sex with mortals before them that have done better jobs.

Luckily it was summer break currently, and therefore my heat cycle didn't interfere with school too much. Laito Sakamaki had become something of a pest over the previous weeks. Ever since I choked him with my aura, he'd become something of a stalker. He appeared at our home in the crypt, at the lounge while I was on stage, he had himself transferred into my classes and, recently, he had taken to appearing at my side in hallways and striking up conversation. I was somewhat annoyed at his presence, but there's not much I can do. I can't kill him because that would be a declaration of love in vampire society, plus he's too well known in mortal society and that would set the hunters on our trail, I can't make a formal complaint with the school because his family owns the place, the best I can hope for is that the situation fades away, or do a form of pest control to manage the situation.

I'd just finished with Goro in the bedroom and was ushering him out as I devoured a pile of blood bags before I fell asleep on the satin sheets of the bed I occasionally used for this purpose. I awoke a few hours later, more in control of myself since my cycle was finally ending, to the sound of shouting outside the room. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and felt the air for unfamiliar presences; Laito. I rolled my eyes and sighed as I sat up on the bed. I lounged back against the pillows as Laito appeared in the doorway in a 3-piece suit and a large bouquet of roses.

I could see behind him my darling brothers were all knocked unconscious. I stood from the bed, walked over to my liquor cabinet and fixed myself a whiskey on the rocks and lit a cigarette.

"Laito, back again," I sighed, leaning against the wall, "to what do I owe the pleasure of your presence this time?"

He smirked and teleported in front of me and placed the roses in a vase next to me, "I heard from the _delightful_ young women at your bar, that you were on sick leave this week. I thought I'd come visit, but you don't seem sick to me…"

He brushed a finger across my thigh and I kicked him onto the floor and sat on his chest, blew some smoke into his face and said, "What I do in my free time, is none of your business…"

He looked at me, wide eyed, with excitement, "You're one of them, aren't you? The vampresses who have their period in heat!"

"What if I am?" I replied, finishing my whiskey.

He grinned, "I think I have an idea that would be mutually beneficial to us."

"Oh?" I said, raising a brow.

"I satisfy you during your heat cycle, and I get to have a fuck buddy," he replied.

I punched him in the face and broke his nose, "How about you satisfy my heat cycle urges, and you leave me alone?"

"I'll take it," he shrugged, flipping me onto my back and undoing his pants.

His shirt and hat were gone in an instant and we rolled as he thrust forward into me. I growled and flipped him onto his back and ground into him, causing him to gasp with pleasure. He pulled out and teleported us to the bed before kneading the flesh of my thigh with his hand and swirling his tongue around my clit. I wrapped my thighs around his neck and made him roll onto his back so I had control of the situation. He stuck two fingers into me and massaged the g-spot, I gasped and was suddenly on my back again with his penis inside me, thrusting hard. I could hear the sound of our flesh slapping into each other and the smell of sweat and sex filled the air. I decided to have some fun with him.

I scratched his back so hard I drew blood and he let out an animalistic growl, I sucked at his flesh until it bruised and he groaned heavily. I looked him in the eye and smirked as I flung him into the wall. As he lay against the wall, dazed, I lowered myself onto his penis and began to grind, pinning his arms forcefully above his head. He let out another moan. My movements alternated between slow and tempting to rough and fast, each one eliciting a different response of pleasure from us both. He looked at me, his eyes hazy with lust, panting my name over and over like a chant.

Suddenly, he managed to build up a surprising amount of strength and knocked me away from him, only to grab me and pin me up against the wall to continue thrusting. I wrapped my arms around his neck and I felt his hand paw at my exposed breast. I moaned loudly and dug my nails into his neck. He buried his face into my neck and let out another low growl. I could feel myself coming close to finishing, and I could tell from the swelling sensation of his penis, he was close to climax too. His thrusts became more eager as he angled my body for a deeper penetration, after a few moments, we both climaxed and sank to the floor.

I pushed him away and he fell on the floor, panting and spent. I moved my hair out of my eyes and wandered to the bathroom to shower. I cleaned up with some soap, washing away the sweat and cum. I could still feel his touch, but that would soon fade with time. The hot water soothed my now sore body and I let the scent of my vanilla shampoo envelope me. When I was done I dried off, wrapped a towel around my torso and hair and left the bathroom.

Laito was still there. He'd made himself comfortable in my bed and was doing a crossword puzzle from a puzzle book I had on the side table.

"What are you still doing here?" I asked, moving over to my dressing table to apply moisturiser.

"Waiting to do some after care," he grinned, moving to my side, thankfully wearing his boxers.

"After care for what?" I inquired, "I'm fine now that I've washed away the mess. I advise you to do the same."

He pouted and said, "Don't you know that after care is important after a round of rough sex? And the way you threw me around and scratched me, it's your responsibility to fulfil your sexual obligation."

I laughed, "Obligation?"

"Yes," he said, turning serious, "now massage the tension out of me or the recording of what transpired here gets released to the world."

He gestured to the roses, where, a live webcam was hidden. I couldn't see it before because it was dark. I glared at him.

"One push of a button from me," he said, producing his cell phone, "and this video goes from a private file on my computer, to every porn site on the web. My identity concealed of course."

He smirked and I stood from my seat, smiling innocently, "Sandalwood or eucalyptus oil?"

He smirked and pulling me close said, "Sandalwood, please."

I massaged the tension out of his shoulders, neck and back. I scratched him several times with my nails 'by mistake' as a petty form of revenge. Once I was done and he was satisfied, he stood up and stretched lazily.

"The file stays safely with me as a private memento," he said, "I'm not a fan of people seeing my sex life, pixelated or not, anyway."

"Bastard," I growled.

He grinned and got dressed, "Until next time, darling."

"Just get out," I sighed, exasperated, as I threw the vase with the flowers at him.


	4. Chapter 4-Unexpected alllies

Chapter 4: Unexpected allies

How could I be so stupid?! You'd think after 620 years I'd learn to be specific with a verbal contract! Laito was holding up his side of the agreement, and had no intention of, and I quote, 'making others envious of his sex life', by uploading the video out of his private files, but he wasn't leaving me alone the way I _wanted_ him too. Because I'd failed to specify when and how long he should leave me alone for, everything had gone back to business as usual, except with less frequent and lengthy visits to my home.

His latest stunts have worsened. When I arrived at school after summer break, I discovered to my absolute horror, a large shrine of red roses around my new, double-doored private locker at the entrance, a new library had been erected in my name, and Laito himself had taken to offering me rides home, asking me out on weekend dates or trips publicly and generally anything he could to get a reaction out of me. I punched him in the face each time, forgetting that he enjoyed me doing so each time.

All I wanted was a moment of peace, so, last period, I ditched class to go out on the town while my brothers distracted Laito. I found an isolated and quiet café that was open late in the heart of the city down a lonely ally and settled down to read after ordering a cup of coffee. It was a book about serial killers in America; a guilty pleasure of mine. I felt a presence stood next to me. I looked up from my book to see Reiji Sakamaki, Laito's older brother whom appeared frequently on the TV for being the driving force behind the Sakamaki's latest IT company whilst majoring in a combined business and science degree and Tokyo University.

"Well, well, well," I grinned, "to what to I owe the privilege, of being in the presence of one of Japan's leading business moguls?"

"I'll keep things brief, Miss Nikorov," he sighed, "may I sit?"

"I think you'd do that anyway, regardless of my answer," I replied, moving the chair in front of me towards him with my foot.

"Correct," he replied curtly, sitting down, "it has come to my attention, that you have engaged in a rather physical relationship with my younger brother. It doesn't matter to me if it was a brief, one-night situation, the point I want to confirm is this; is it true there is footage of your encounter together?"

"Yes, your brother has it in his possession in a private folder, at least to my knowledge," I shrugged.

"So, you do not have a copy of this footage yourself?" he pressed.

"No, I wasn't even aware I was being filmed until after the fact," I replied.

He muttered something under his breath, then sighed, "Very well, I'll see to it that this footage is destroyed and no trace of it may be found. It can be damaging to our family."

I shrugged, "May I ask you a few things?"

"I'm a busy man, make it quick," he replied curtly.

"Why do you care?" I asked, "I'm nobody to the world, and Laito has no intention of anyone but himself seeing the footage."

"Laito is sloppy," he replied, "it doesn't matter if you're nothing but a common whore or a socialite of the finest pedigree, there are enemies of our family who would pay a great deal of money to individuals who can find dirt on us. Laito's possession of such a film is exactly the kind of thing they would use to destroy everything we hold dear."

"Vampire elite hold things dear?" I snorted.

"It may seem trivial to you, but I quite enjoy drinking black tea imported from India of the highest quality in fine China in the comfort of a classic Victorian tea room on my own private estate," he answered.

"Wow, that is the definition of first world problems," I chuckled.

He frowned and said, "Don't get sassy with me, or I'd have to teach you some manners."

I winked and said, "Don't threaten me with a good time, Mr Sakamaki."

He cringed slightly and said, "I can see why Laito liked you."

He handed me his business card and said, "Contact me if there's an emergency situation like this again, I'll see to it that it never sees the light of day."

I took the card and produced my own business card that I had tucked away in my bra, "My business card, in case you feel like seeing me again to remove that broom you've got up your ass."

He scowled but took the card anyway. I chuckled and he left the café. What an interesting character…

Reiji's P.O.V.

I walked out of the café and back to the parked car that was waiting to take me to my next business meeting. The card she gave smelled faintly of sweat and Patchouli and jasmine, probably from her Estee Lauder, Youth Dew perfume. It wasn't entirely unpleasant. I looked at the business card; Lounge Noir, Burlesque performances; everything you dream of, but never can possess.

"Ruka Nikorov…" I mused, "She's a strange one alright."

I saved her number on the card and proceeded to take the necessary steps to avoid a public scandal at the hands of my idiot brother.

Everything externally had been handled by the time I returned home, Laito was out at the burlesque club again, so that gave me plenty of time to delete the video from his laptop. Once I'd hacked into his computer I hunted around his files until I came across an encrypted file full of video JPEG's. I had to view the files to figure out which one was which, and viewing several vulgar pornography clips I would _never_ want to see again, before I found the clip I needed.

I saw Ruka and Laito in a fairly vanilla situation; Ruka was in silk negligee, smoking and drinking, but fairly elegant looking in a feminine, silk adorned room and Laito was in a suit. They were talking and Laito tried to pull a fast one before Ruka swiftly put him in his place, they made a verbal agreement for Laito to leave her alone in exchange for sex, afterwards (once I'd skipped to the end of the 3-hour clip), Ruka disappears into what looks like a bathroom and Laito recovers and goes to lie on the bed, Ruka emerges and tries to get him to leave, at which point he blackmails her.

After I assessed the damage of the clip in question, I proceeded to wipe the entire hard drive of it, taking extensive measures to ensure the home movie could never be recovered.

I sent her a message saying the film no longer existed and walked out of Laito's room to my own. My phone buzzed, a reply; ' _I owe you dinner ; )_ '

I thought back to the board meeting discussing the charity Christmas gala and replied, ' _I may take you up on that offer_ '

I loosened my tie, made some tea and sat down on my couch. I pulled out her business card once again, mulling over an idea in my brain.

The next evening, after work, I made a covert appearance at the lounge. I sat at the back, in a secluded booth and watched the main stage. Common human live stock in fishnet stockings and corsets danced away while drooling males threw money at them and the bar tenders. How primitive.

Ruka appeared on stage and the audience cheered and whistled, she was wearing a seductive red, off-shoulder dress and began singing 'Welcome to Burlesque'. Her voice was enchanting, and I found myself spell bound. I sat back, nursing a drink before producing a pen and paper from my inside jacket pocket and started writing. I folded the letter and stopped a passing waitress to hand her the letter with a large cash payment to ensure the note would be delivered swiftly. I finished my drink and swiftly left the seating area, teleporting to where I needed to be next.


	5. Chapter 5- A beneficial contract

Chapter 5: A beneficial contract

I read Reiji's note once I was done on stage, put a Chinese silk robe around myself and made my way to the office. 'A special offer' eh? The least I could do was hear him out.

He was already sat in front of my desk and I moved to the side table to make some tea.

"So, what can I do for you, Mr Sakamaki?" I asked as I boiled the water.

"I have a contractual agreement that would be beneficial to the both of us," he replied, as I brewed the tea, "you pose as my girlfriend for a year and I'll elevate the status of your business to attract more customers and pay you handsomely."

I placed the tea in front of him and raised my eyebrow, "Why me?"

"You're convenient, and based upon the way you carry yourself on stage you have training in etiquette and poise," he explained, "and as a performer, you should do a decent job of the role I'm employing you to fill with relative ease."

"Won't people think it strange that you're dating a burlesque dancer?" I asked, sitting behind my desk.

"Burlesque dancer and _business woman_ , is a title that makes you appealing and practical, it's the perfect image I need for this contract," he replied, "your position will suit my situation nicely, and, once the contract is over, it will be publicly announced that we've parted on good terms so neither of us are negatively implicated."

"Why do you suddenly need a girlfriend for a year?" I asked.

"A man of my position will be taken more seriously if I appear to not be an idle bachelor," he answered, "being seen as a young man instead of a young boy is better to aid the development of my company, being seen publicly to be looking into the prospect of marriage through dating will aid this image."

"I guess I see the sense in that," I shrugged, "so you're basically paying me to be an elegant piece of arm candy that can hold conversation about market developments and stock holds to increase annual profit?"

He gave a stiff smile, "Basically."

"Send a written contract for me to look over," I said, lighting a cigarette, "I won't sign it until I'm satisfied with the agreement, and you should cover all of my expenses."

"Of course," he nodded.

"That includes outfits, make-up, salon treatments etc." I warned.

"Understood," he bowed.

"I believe we shall get along swimmingly then, _Reiji_ ," I smiled, offering my hand to shake.

He took it and planted a kiss upon it, which surprised me. He left and I sat behind my desk, pondering the situation. I've always struggled keeping the lounge open. The mortgage, the wages, the bills, the costumes and maintenance of the building, as well as personal expenses at home. It all left me with very little to my name. If the status of my club was elevated and I networked correctly, the club could take off, maybe become the global franchise I always aspired it to be. The hefty sum of money Reiji pays me could contribute to paying off my debts and I could _finally_ own a club without going bankrupt. I need to negotiate and plan meticulously, _nothing_ must get in my way, _nothing_ can disrupt the balance or ruin my networking. I _need_ this chance. If I pull of playing the faithful bride and business woman well enough, I could attract the attention of some wealthy investors, or a temporary romantic interest. Mortals _love_ the damsel in distress act, the lonely woman.

Cold and cruel, but effective. I've been using the tactic to settle my debts for years, but I've learned from my mistakes. I'm determined to succeed this time. I will do _whatever_ it takes.

My first 'assignment' as part of our contract, was a magazine interview that would publicly declare our 'relationship' and 'plans for engagement'. Reiji and I had gathered in private to get our stories straight; we met through Laito at my club, and, after a few hours of discussion an attraction developed and we'd been going out for several months now, and decided we'd like to get married down the line. There would be some discussion of our businesses, what our future plans were for our companies as well as our personal opinions of each other and photo-shoots.

I was dressed quite smartly alongside Reiji in the magazines head office where the interview would be held, and I'd already been promised a handsome sum of money for doing this interview. Reiji and I were interviewed separately at first, then we'd be interviewed together.

"So, Miss Nikorov," the interviewer smiled, "What was your first impression of Mr Sakamki?"

"Well, he was a bit of a closed book when I met him for the first time," I replied, "but a few drinks in him and friendly business chat, he opened up to me pretty quickly; something I've heard he rarely does."

"Yes, Mr Sakamaki has been notoriously difficult to interview in the past," she answered, "what has he been like since you started dating?"

"He was…shy in a way at first," I answered carefully with a chuckle, "I don't know how else to describe it, because he's quite methodical by nature, the first date was pretty amusing, everything was scheduled and regimented, and it took a few dates before that habit loosened up, but I find it adorable. He likes to be organised, and since this is his first relationship since middle school, he's a little rusty."

"Well, that is an insightful perspective to him," she said, amazed at my 'honesty', "what about in 'private', if I may ask? What is he like?"

I laughed heartily, "He's like an old man. Stripped pyjamas and pecks on the cheek if he knows his brothers are nearby, but what happens when we're actually alone, is our little secret."

"How does he know...?" she asked, making a gesture.

"He just _knows_ ," I explained, "I think it's a skill you develop being an older sibling. I can relate, I've had 12."

"Had?" she asked.

"No comment. That last part stays off record; it has no relevance to this interview," I reply quietly.

She turns off the voice recorder and says, "Have you…lost siblings?"

I sigh, "Yes, I have. Tragic circumstances. That's all you'll ever know."

"I'm sorry for your loss," she sympathised.

I shed a small tear for emotional effect and sniffed.

"Let's take a break," she said hurriedly, "I'm _so_ sorry."

She left to get coffee and Reiji entered the room, "Good damage control. You're a skilled actress."

"Centuries of practice," I sighed, lighting a cigarette, then, changing the subject, "finals are around the corner for both of us and graduation is coming up for me in a few months after your charity gala. What's the dress code? I need to find a dress."

"Formal ball attire," he replied, "like the kind you see in American movies."

I tutted and rolled my eyes, "You rich people," then noticing we were being watched through the glass walls of the room, "sit down, we're being watched, look like we're intimate."

He obeyed and sat next to me and held my hand as if comforting me, "Good move." I commented.

"Centuries of practice," he replied.

I grinned and finished my cigarette, "I need to monitor the girl's rehearsals after this, the new season is approaching."

He was about to question the random thought when the interviewer came back in with refreshments, "I can drop you back off at work if you need to run through the rehearsals."

"Thank you, it's on the way to your next appointment anyway, isn't it?" I replied.

The interviewer smiled, "Shall we finish up?"

Laito's P.O.V.

1 week later…

I tore up the magazine I'd just been reading. They're _engaged_?! I was furious. Ruka was _my_ toy to play with. What is Reiji trying to pull? The article was written from an unbiased perspective, but it still made it seem like they were incredibly intimate. Their 'activities' together only solidified that. I hate them both. _How dare they_?

Everywhere I looked their relationship was all over the media, it was talked about on radio shows, in the hallways at school; I couldn't escape it. _She is MINE_. _Mine_ to play with, to torment and pleasure. I'm not done with you yet Ruka Nikorov, not by a long shot. You still have entertainment value! This _engagement_ is _not_ acceptable! I broke my desk by throwing it against the wall, I smashed pictures, destroyed my bed sheets and slammed my fist into the table so hard it broke in half.

Once I finally cooled off, I began to think; this could work to my advantage…I could ruin them both publicly, starting at the Christmas charity ball. Ruka, you _will_ be mine…at least until I'm done with you. You don't have a choice. I will _ruin you_.

 **Leave comments on what you think of the story so far. Updates coming soon.**


	6. Chapter 6-Kiss under the mistletoe

Chapter 6: Kiss under the mistletoe

 **Warning: smut ahead in this chapter.**

I was shopping for a gown in a high-end boutique and my idiot brothers were getting fitted for suits. The attendants were flittering around, thrusting gown after gown into my face as I sipped champagne.

"No, blue is the colour of the season!" I sighed, exasperated, " _Everyone_ will be wearing it! Red, green and white are too predictable. I'm going to a ball, not Santa's grotto!"

"Yes, Miss Nikorov!" they bowed.

"What about this silver one?" one asked, "To match your hair."

"Oh, how original," I said, rolling my eyes, "I'm the fiancé of one of Japan's most elite businessman, I need to look my _best_."

"Red is your colour, darling, but since you've ruled it out, lavender would suit you best," Laito's voice commented.

"Excuse me, sir, this is the _women's_ fitting room," the attendant pointed out.

"He's my brother-in-law, trust me when I say you won't stop him," I called, finishing the rest of my drink.

The attendant stepped aside and Laito smirked as he moved towards me, "The lavender would soften your cheek bones."

"Now, why couldn't you people come up with something like that?" I said pointedly.

"A regular jasmine blossom in winter," Laito winked.

"Being oddly _helpful_ , aren't we Laito?" I hissed at him as they busied themselves.

"I merely want my sister-in-law to stand out the way she should," he winked.

I gave him a sceptical look and said, "I somehow doubt true your intentions are so innocent."

"You're right, my real intention is to ultimately steal you away from my brother, torture you for my own amusement until I get bored and discard you," he grinned.

I snorted and poured more champagne, being courteous enough to pour him some as I sent a text to Reiji and smiling.

"You're a real love-bird, aren't you dear?" he smiled coldly.

I plastered my own smile onto my face, "Well, some of us just find love easier than others, how's that dancer I heard you were dating? Cherry, was it?"

The smiled fell from his face and I smirked as I drank the remainder of my drink. I could feel his serious stare at my face and I looked at him out the corner of my eye and said, "In my business, the rumour mill turns faster than a hormonal high school girls twitter feed, and often produces more truths."

His eyes widened and I leaned forward, lowering my voice, "I have eyes and ears _everywhere_ , Laito, so don't try and pull a fast one on me. I'll find out your intentions sooner, rather than later."

He stared at me for a while longer before his look darkened. He finished his champagne and left in stony silence. I smirked once more and refilled my glass, savouring the taste of my petty victory. I received a text back from Reiji; he'd done what I asked. It was shortly followed by a series of text messages from my girls at the club. _I knew it_. I purchased a lavender dress with many chiffon layers and a flowing skirt and left the boutique in a pretty good mood.

Laito's P.O.V

I wanted to strangle her then and there. How _dare_ she make a fool of me? I wanted to hurt her so badly...I'd show her at the ball. I'd already prepared many things to degrade her…

I don't _fucking believe it_! She saw through everything! The plan to make her dress colour match the Prime Minister's wife, the flirtatious dance around the ballroom she had with me was rebutted on twitter as me 'being too drunk to manage his actions', and the 'love potion' in the champagne has done nothing but expose several marital affairs among the other guests! I hate her! I downed a drink of something alcoholic from one of the passing waiters as I seethed in the corner, watching her laugh and flirt with Reiji, before going outside for some air.

I'd confronted her in the garden, secluded away from the rest of the party-goers and said, "You're a bitch in more ways than one!"

She laughed heartily and said, "I told you; nothing gets past me. You lose, Laito."

She was drunk and merry from the champagne she'd brought with her. I hated her. I hated the passion she made me feel when she abused me, I hated how much I enjoyed sleeping with her, I hated being made a fool of, I hated my pride as a man being laughed at before my very eyes as she out-foxed me.

What happened next surprised both of us. I slapped her across the face and dragged her by the hair and threw her at the garden wall, the mixture of shock and surprise on her face aroused me. I climbed on top of her, growling and thoroughly turned on at the flash of fear across her face. I pinned her arms down above her head and used my legs to restrain her lower body. I buried my face into her neck and inhaled deeply as I traced my tongue up her neck; the aroma of fear mixed with the sweat on her skin and vanilla perfume made me dizzy with lust and my head go light, I felt my pants become uncomfortable as I smelled the gentle scent of her shampoo, and tasted the sweat on her skin from her continued struggle. She was _divine_.

I wanted to devour and degrade her then and there. I kissed her forcibly, savouring the sweet liquor of her lips before exploring her mouth with my tongue. She was so sweet. I craved more and more of her. I wanted her entire being to belong to me. I wanted to take her. The warmth of her mouth and her sweet taste was purely intoxicating, and the soft touch of her skin. I moved my hand to the back of her neck to deepen the kiss and I let out a soft moan. The moment was short-lived as I felt her bite my tongue hard enough to draw blood, and I jolted back on reflex. She shoved me away with such force I flew several feet. She took this opportunity to scramble to her feet and return to the party at break neck speed. I lay on my back dazed for a few moments, before my cock twitched painfully in my trousers and I felt myself become frustrated at my situation. The opportunity to defile her was gone. I teleported home.

Back in the privacy of my room, I locked all the doors and windows, closed the drapes until I was on complete darkness except for a few candles that had been lit by the maids. I removed my pants, freeing my erection, and then removed the rest of my clothing, feeling something sharp scratch my hand lightly. I ignored it. I needed release. I loved masturbating as much as I loved having sex. My dick already released some pre-cum, so I used that as a lubricant. I closed my eyes for a moment as I thought back to the kiss moments ago, the sweet, addictive taste of her lips…imagining those lips around my cock made me groan loudly. I pumped faster, opening my eyes and envisioning the time we had sex; her crawling on top of me and grinding, wild, free and sexy with her tight, virgin-like hole. I slowed my pace as I imagined the warm wet feeling of being inside her, the way she moved her hips to give friction, the smell of the air and our bodies both slick with sweat. I could almost imagine it as real as if it were happening now. How I wished my hallucination were real, so I could punish her, and feel the pleasure of her clawing my back once again, suck and bite on her flesh, taste the sweetness of both her lips again. I pumped faster and faster with each image until finally I shot my load all up my chest and onto my face. I wonder what she'd look like, covered in all of my cum, tied up and being punished. The thought almost made hard again.

I cleaned up and realised the absurdity of my fantasy. I was lusting after the woman I hated most in the world. It seems to be a recurring theme in my life. I lay awake for hours, well into the day, thinking about the pain of my tongue from where she'd bit me, occasionally giving my cock some lazy strokes. I decided that sleep was going to elude me today, so I climbed out of bed. I noticed something on my jacket that I'd thrown to the ground; a mistletoe bud. We'd kissed under a mistletoe tree. I chuckled at the irony of a lustful act happening under such a romantic setting, something so commonly associated with love. I lay back onto my bed, suddenly feeling tired. I curled up under the sheets and fell into one of the best sleeps I'd ever had, still clutching the mistletoe.


	7. Chapter 7-Yui's Vision

Chapter 7: Yui

Reiji-sans new fiancé was a strange one, but she seemed nice enough. My only concern was Laito-kun's recent behaviour. He was quieter, and constantly brooding over something. He always had a far-off look in his eyes, and whenever Ruka was present in the manor, his whole demeaner would change. His back would straighten and he'd always wear a serious expression on his face. I was worried about him.

"Oi, pancake!" Ayato, who had come out of our shared bathroom, called, "What's with the long face?"

"Do you think something happened between Laito and Ruka?" I asked, "They don't seem to get along."

"Who knows and who cares," he shrugged, drying his hair.

"I'm worried about him, he's not acting like himself," I commented.

"Why are you thinking of other men?" he snapped, "You're mine, pancake."

"S-sorry, Ayato…" I muttered, looking away.

He grinned and said, "You can make it up to me by giving me your blood."

"Huh?" I blurted as he climbed into bed next to me and bit my neck.

I winced from the pain and felt my consciousness fade away. Before I knew it, I was asleep.

 _I awoke in room with which I was unfamiliar. It appeared to be some sort of stone tower, there was a small bed in the corner, in which two girls in chains lay asleep. One had black hair, the other…silver. Was this Ruka's childhood? Who is the other girl? The door swung open and a man in a traditional Japanese Kimono with black hair stepped in, followed by a group of about 11 younger boys._

 _The two girls, who looked like twins, sat up and held each other, clearly afraid of them._

" _You stay away from us you brutes!" Ruka yelled, her small childhood form shaking with fear._

" _Now, now Ruka darling, is that anyway to talk to your father and brothers?" the dark-haired man grinned._

 _I was cast out of the room in my vision to outside the door, where I could hear the laughter of the men and the screams of fear and pain of the girls. I shivered at the thought of what could be going on behind those doors. It went on for hours. When the boys and their father emerged from the room they all seemed pretty pleased with themselves. I looked through the door and the saw the girls, bruised, bleeding and sobbing in each other's arms on the floor._

 _The scenery changed and I found myself in a garden with three beautiful women in kimono's enjoying the sun. Two were fairly traditional looking Japanese women, the other was clearly a foreign woman. She had silver hair and a stern gaze. She was singing as she sews with the other women, and her voice was as beautiful as she. The man from before appeared from behind a sliding door._

" _My darling wives," he smiled, "our sons are off training in the mountains with their uncles and my daughters are preparing for their first stage performance. Svetlana, will you supervise them? Ruka has a great deal of potential, but Heidi needs more work."_

" _If that is what my husband commands," the silver haired woman replied bitterly._

 _The scene changed to a western style dance studio, and the twins were wearing silk kimono's, the silver haired woman, Svetlana, supervising them._

" _Straighten your spine you little wretches!" she snapped, "Can't you do anything right?!"_

 _The twins were clearly exhausted, but they did their best to follow their mother's instruction._

" _I should never have had children," she muttered under her breath, "useless, ugly pigs the pair of them! That man…"_

 _I watched in horror as she whipped them and struck them across the face with her hand, she even threw a vase at Ruka that caused her face to bleed._

 _The performance followed, and Ruka, now fully healed, shone like a star before the audience. I overheard some men say she'd eventually out-shine her mother. Male members of the audience threw money at the stage while the thunderous applause continued. I saw her mother in the corner and her face darkened._

 _The next scene was of Heidi and Ruka being tortured in what looked like a medieval dungeon…by their mother. Their screams were enough to make my ears bleed, thankfully they didn't. Their mother was now in western medieval attire, so some time had passed since the last image. She was shouting abuse at them and threatening to cut out their tongues and gouge out their eyes. I nearly threw up._

 _The next few images showed Ruka under the continued hold of her families hold, performing on stage, being tortured, raped, abused and damaged._

The vision faded as I was being shook awake. I opened my eyes?

"Laito-kun?" I asked, surprised.

He shushed me and ushered me to follow him. Careful not to wake Ayato, I complied.

"What's wrong, Laito-kun?" I asked.

"I was walking past when I heard you say Ruka's name," he explained, "your dream involved a vision about her, didn't it?"

I nodded and he put his hand out and said, "Transfer the vision over. I need to see this."

I gave him a confused look but complied by taking his hand. He gasped as the vision entered his sight and staggered back.

"Are you okay?" I asked, worried.

"Y-yeah…" he muttered, staggering to his feet.

He regained his composure and looked as though he'd realised something. He teleported away before I could ask any further questions, so I just went back to bed.

Laito's P.O.V.

She'd been through hell and come out an angel. Nothing I could do to her would be any worse. It was frustrating, but…I still wanted her to be mine. What is this feeling? I can't degrade her any further, what I can do, or have planned to do, isn't a patch on what's already been done. She might be just as broken as I am…

I made up my mind; I need to see her. _Now_.

 **Author's note: next update to the story won't be for a short while as I need a break to recharge from this story. I'll be writing other personal projects privately, but a new update will follow soon enough. Feel free to read the story and send reviews, I love reading them and incorporating my readers ideas to help them enjoy the story more.**


	8. Chapter 8- a change of heart

Chapter 8: A change of heart

I could feel him in the room with me. I could sense him behind me as I stood on the balcony of Reiji's room. His hand reached out onto the balcony and thorns and roses grew on a vine from his touch to form a beautiful arrangement of fragrant red roses.

"You're an earth mate," I commented, "manipulation of plants and their life force."

He stood so close I could feel his breath on my exposed back. He was silent.

"Yui showed you her vision," I continued, trying to ignore the anxiety I felt having him so close, "are you here to mock me?"

Silence.

"I'm in love with your brother," I blurted, "you know that."

"I know…" was all he said, "but you know he doesn't love you."

I looked down, as if I could avoid this harsh truth by denying it. It was a contractual marriage and somewhere along the line, I began caring about Reiji. I broke my golden rule, but tried to fight it by burying myself in my work.

"It matters little to me," I said flatly, trying to stop my voice from shaking, "I have my business to think of and the feelings will soon fade. I belong to know one and I never shall."

He touched the back of my shoulder and I tensed from the sudden touch. His hand was warm against my skin and it sent shockwaves through my body. He wrapped his arms around me and held so tight you'd think he thought I'd disappear forever if he let go.

"What happened to them?" he whispered, stroking my hair, "How'd you get away?"

I took a deep breath and said, "We killed them, obviously."

"How?" he asked.

"Heidi and I managed to coax the guard outside of our cell into letting us out over a period of time; he felt sorry for us," I explained, "we tortured my father, his two other wives and his sons to death. All that was left was my mother. She hated us for stealing her limelight at shows, and neglected us further once her son was born. So, we poisoned and tortured him to and fed his poisoned remains to her in a meal. We tried to kill her in her weakened state, but she was still too strong for us. We walked away from that fight severely injured and on the brink of death. Heidi offered her blood to me so I could escape while she stayed behind. She sealed my mother away in the mirror realm using the last of her energy, and that's where she remains; on the other side of the mirror, until I can kill her."

He listened to my story in complete silence before he turned me around to face him, and said, "I never thought I'd meet someone as damaged as me."

"We're immortals Laito, it'd be more surprising to find someone in this life who hasn't been damaged," I answered.

He searched my face as if looking for an answer to an unspoken question before kissing me. I froze and tried to push him away but he held firm so even if I used my ability to fling him away I'd go with him. His tongue searched my mouth and even when I bit him he persisted, the metallic tang of his blood filled my mouth before changing to taste like rose water and strawberries.

He finally let me go and I shoved him away, spitting out the blood and slapping him across the face. He smiled and haled a hand to face.

"I love you too, darling," he said quietly.

I teleported back to the club, sobbing and flung myself back onto the couch. My chest ached and felt heavy. I didn't notice them in my doorway until it was too late. I was struck over the back of the head with something heavy, I could smell the blood of my brothers and the faces of Shin and Carla above me as my vision faded to black…

Laito's P.O.V

I could smell him before I saw him.

"Ikuto! What the hell happened?" I cried, seeing him heavily injured and bleeding.

"They…they came out of nowhere…" he gasped, "the founders…they took her…they took Ruka!"

"Where'd they take her?" I demanded.

"Some old castle…one of them said…something about her mother…" he choked, "they're gonna bring her back!"

"I'm going to bring Ruka back safe, okay?" I said.

"You love her, don't you?" he asked, grasping at my sleeve.

I looked at him and he laughed, "We all love Ruka, but she never returns anyone's feelings…you're wasting your time on a fool's errand. There's no hope for you. She'll never love you…"

"That may be true, but I love her…and I promise to show her that every day, until the day I die," I replied, "she is a storm; strong, beautiful and ruthless. Loving her…will be the greatest journey and privilege I could hope for."

I left him there and teleported to the castle I saw in Yui's vision; Ruka's old home. I could feel the presence of the founders and Ruka, along with that of her mother. They must have freed her already. I made my way into the castle entry way and froze. My father was here. I teleported to the tower and sure enough, there he was, among the founders and Svetlana.

"Laito, here to pick up your blushing, want-to-be bride?" he smiled, taunting me.

I took every fibre of restraint in my body not to slaughter him then and there as I said, "I've come to collect Ruka, I believe your use for her is now at an end."

"You can have the little slut once I've killed her!" Svetlana snapped.

"No," my father said, "let him take her."

"What?!" she cried.

"We still have a use for her," he replied coolly, "Laito, you may take your love home. Treat her well while the peace lasts."

I moved past him and picked up Ruka's unconscious and bleeding form bridal style.

I glared at them all and said, "You _will_ pay, for hurting her."

And I teleported home. I cleaned her wounds so that they could heal properly, I washed her face and changed her clothes, which were dirty, so that she was now wearing an old shirt of mine that was too big for her small and fragile frame. I changed into my boxers and snuggled down into bed next to her. I stuck on my favourite snuff film and held her the entire day as she slept soundly.

I felt her move and stir around 2pm. I opened my eyes, still bleary from sleep.

"No…! Let me go…" she mumbled.

She's having a nightmare. I stroked her hair and shushed her, "No one's going to get you, not while I'm here."

She settled down and few minutes later she opened her eyes. She looked at me and sat up in surprise before collapsing back onto the bed.

"Take it easy!" I said gently, "You're still very weak from the attack. I have some blood in my fridge. Just rest for now."

I kissed her forehead and rolled over to the mini-fridge I kept beside my bed. I pulled out a bag of O- and handed it to her. She guzzled it down quickly and I handed her a second bag. She polished it off quickly and fell back against the sheets, too tired to do anything else. I lay beside her and stroked her cheek. I smiled.

"What are you so happy about?" she muttered.

"It's a secret," I winked, teasing her.

She rolled her eyes and turned over onto her stomach. She looked so cute like this; half-asleep, messy hair and in my over-sized shirt. She was still too weak, even after eating her fill of food. I snuggled up to 'keep her warm' (as I claimed), but in reality, I wanted to treasure this moment. I wanted to keep this purity forever. I her semi-conscious state she wrapped a slender, soft arm around my tors and snuggled in deep, wrapping a leg across. I planted kisses up her arm and cradled her. I'd never been this happy before.

Later that evening she woke up hungry again and I fed her. She complained she needed a shower, so when I went to freshen up, I took her with me. I helped her wash and even washed her hair. I let her have a short bath while I dried off and wrapped a towel around my waist. I sat near the bath and held her hand. Once she was ready to get out I dried her off and re-wrapped the towel around her hair as I put a bathrobe around her. It was as I was drying her hair with the hairdryer I encountered a small…'problem'. It was late January; her heat cycle was beginning.

Her flesh was warm, her face flushed and her breasts swelled. I could smell the lust in the sweat on her skin…it was intoxicating. She looked at me with bleary eyes and I swallowed hard.

 **Authors note: heavy smut scenes next chapter. Feel free to leave reviews as well as any kinks or fetishes you think these two would likely explore during their week long 'sex-capade'. ; ) General feedback, criticisms and plot ideas are always welcome to make the reading more enjoyable for my readers.**


	9. Chapter 9- Affection

Chapter 9: Affection

The only way I could describe my week so far is amazing. She was still too weak to do anything seriously kinky, but I loved every moment of it. Being able to hold her close as I pumped away, hearing her moan in my ear. When we weren't having sex, she was eating or sleeping. She'd cuddle up to me for warmth and fall asleep. My brothers were annoyed, but I kept her safe. Reiji was overseas and there's no doubt he'd heard what had been going on through the grapevine.

The last day of her cycle had arrived and I had mixed feelings about it, I didn't want it to end, but also, I wanted to be able to hear her sharp tongue cut into me with harsh words again. She was too precious.

She was asleep on my chest as I did a crossword puzzle. We were both still naked from the last round. I could feel the heat radiating from her body and see her flushed cheeks. She rolled on top of me and I felt my dick harden again, it was getting harder to concentrate. I shifted uncomfortably underneath her. I eventually gave up on the crossword puzzle and proceed to shift myself on top of her to bite her neck and nibble her earlobe. She mumbled something incoherent in her sleep and her eyes fluttered open. I kissed her and stroked her hair just like she loved and she kissed back. The taste of strawberries ever-present on her lips. She muttered something about needing a shower in my ear and I smiled.

I carried her to the bathroom and turned on the shower while she hugged her body closer to mine in the piggy-back I was giving her. I felt something sharp and painful in my neck and I winced from the pain and moaned. I looked in the mirror; she was feeding on me. I'll admit, it was kinda a turn on. I walked into the now warm water of the shower and proceeded to clean us both up using the rose scented soaps and shampoo.

I was about to turn off the water when I felt a different type of warmth and wetness around my dick. I gasped and fell to the floor of the large walk-in shower as the water fell on top of us from every direction. She bit into me again and began feeding as she moved up and down. I felt my head swim with pleasure and moaned into her ear as I dragged my nails down her back. She cried out and threw her head back, I flipped us over and kissed her neck as I continued to pump away. She moved her legs so that her feet were on my shoulders and I could penetrate deeper. I cried out loudly from the sensation and started to move faster and deftly played with her clit, she tightened up and I felt her insides get warmer; she was getting close. I pulled out but kept her legs firmly in the air with my hands around her thighs. I swirled my tongue around her clit and sucked gently before running my tongue on the inside of her first hole. I tasted the outside first before delving deeper into the velvet like inside; she tasted so sweet. I toyed with her for a good few minutes before I stuck one finger inside, swiftly followed by another and twisted around roughly. She cried out and I grinned.

"Damn you're a dirty one," I muttered as I rubbed that rough patch of her insides enthusiastically.

She pulled on my hair roughly and I proceeded to pull out my fingers and replace it with my aching dick. I pumped away harder and faster, keeping her legs in the air and eventually I felt a warm liquid erupt from her. I pulled out and blew my load all over her. We lay there panting as the hot water cleaned us up, and eventually I picked her up and turned off the water.

We dried off and returned to bed. She fell asleep facing the other way and I grabbed my phone, turning on the camera to study the bite marks she'd left on me. Sure enough; two perfect puncture holes directly in my neck. I grinned and took a picture.

She slept once again and this time I went on the internet. I hunted around for several items for a few hours and found exactly what I was looking for. If I wanted to pull this off, I'd need to get a hang off these earth mate powers.

Ruka disappeared when I fell asleep a few hours later. The bed felt cold and empty without her. I sighed and went to the manor's gym for a few hours.

I'd just finished up when I saw Reiji and Ruka on the gyms TV; both businesses were expanding. Reiji was going into property development, and Ruka was considering building a hotel empire with live burlesque shows. The newscast had dubbed them 'The Ultimate Power couple'. That line alone made my blood boil. If I truly wanted Ruka, I'd need to be on Reiji's level, as well as above it.

I picked up my phone and called my PA that I rarely used. He picked up on the third ring.

"Mr Sakamaki, sir!" he cried, surprised I called him, "You hardly ever call me! Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all Daiki," I said coolly, "I have a job for you."

"Anything, sir!" he cried.

"Find a large property for me, one that can either be renovated into the best hotel Japan has ever seen, or where it can be built," I demanded.

"Of course!" he replied, "But sir, may I ask, why?"

"I want to prove I'm worthy of the woman I love," I told him.

"I see, then I'll work extra hard to find the perfect place for you, sir!" he answered.

I hung up and smiled and then called our families' private detective.

"I need you to dig up everything you can on my brother Reiji's company," I told him, "I don't care whether you think it's insignificant, I want that information. I'll pay you triple whatever he pays you to report back to him with our conversations to you if you keep this quiet."

"Understood, sir," he replied, "also, that boy, Ikuto, that died in the manor last week; don't worry, we've made his body and life untraceable."

"Good," I replied as I hung up.

Just you wait Reiji, I'll steal her from under your feet yet.


	10. Chapter 10-Competion

Chapter 10: Competition

It's official; Daiki is a miracle worker. He found the perfect place and out-bided Ruka on the property in the process, as well as arrangements for the construction company. I was set to meet with them just after graduation.

We'd also bought out a catering company that was about to go bust and a fashion house on the cheap. I'd sent out instructions via email, and the businesses were slowly but surely turning themselves around. Graduation was just around the corner and my '19th birthday' was as well. I was scheduled with lots of meetings today after-school and I had college applications to respond to.

My hair stylist had cut my hair shorter for my birthday and graduation after school. She was surprised at my request, but if I was serious about Ruka, I'd need to remove all ties to 'that woman' from my life, including the long hair she loved. I slicked my hair back and put my usual hat back on once she was done. I'll admit; I looked older, but in a good way. My meeting with the fashion house took a while, but I'd established with them that they needed more apprentice designers from colleges to bring something fresh to the company to improve sales, and the catering company needed a new, more experienced head chef if it was going to be part of my new hotel. We'd be expanding into restaurants to build a reputation over the coming months.

Tokyo University had accepted me for a business major. Everything was going according to plan. All I needed was the private detective to get back to me. I was finishing a history assignment when I got the golden call.

"Tell me everything," I said upon answering.

"You're gonna love this," he laughed, "your brother is not only guilty of embezzlement, but he's also guilty of insider trading and misuse of corporate property for personal gain."

"Good work," I grinned, adjusting the metallic ring on my right hand, "Are Ruka's assets involved in any of this?"

"No, but he's been pressuring her for a merger," he replied.

"See what you can do to prevent that from happening," I ordered, "Anything else?"

"Yeah," he replied, "Mr. Perfect…has a mistress."

I stopped my fidgeting and paused, "He. Has. A. What?!"

"A mistress," he repeated, "Houses her in a luxury condo in Hokkaido. It's been going on for a while; some American socialite."

"Send copies of your evidence to Ruka's club and my office," I demanded, "keep me posted on the situation should it develop."

He faxed the files over and I teleported to Ruka's club a few minutes later. I walked through the main lounge, looking up at the glass windows with the red curtain on the third floor and saw Ruka looking over the files. I picked up my pace and arrived outside her door to hear her scream and cry in pain. My chest tightened and I entered the office holding my breath. She was on her chaise lounge, in floods of tears, clutching the paper.

I shut the door quietly behind me and moved over to the drinks cabinet. I prepared two dirty vodka martinis while she calmed down. I sat across from her and placed the drink in front of her and sipped mine quietly.

She gradually slowed down to mere hiccups and downed her drink, throwing the glass at the wall. I quietly stood up and made her a whisky on the rocks, which she downed in a few gulps. She tried to light a cigarette but her hands were shaking too much. She gave up in frustration and threw her lighter onto the table and put her head in her hands. I sat down next to her, picked up her lighter, tilted her face up to me and lit her cigarette for her. She sat in silence, absent-mindedly smoking while I put an arm around her.

"You did this, didn't you?" she said finally, "You sent the files over."

"I had them sent over," I admitted.

"What did you think that would achieve?" she laughed bitterly, "That because I've let you bone me a few times I'd go running into your arms? That this information was going to make me another solid notch on your belt?"

"You're not a notch on my belt, Ruka," I replied, "and I sent the files over because you deserved to know the truth. You don't deserve this treatment. You never have."

"So, what's your plan hot-shot?" she sneered.

"I plan to crush Reiji in his own game and prove I'm the better sibling," I declared.

"For what?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"For you," I confessed, "so you'll see me the way you see him, only better."

She laughed, "I'm a big girl, I can fight my own battles."

"Yes, but this isn't a battle just yet," I said, "It's a competition. And whether you like it or not, you're the prize. Reiji needs you, so he'll do whatever he can to keep you. If I steal you away from him, which I will, he'll have nothing left to stand on, contract or no contract."

"You knew about that?" she asked, bewildered.

"I suspected," I replied.

"It doesn't matter," she answered, "the contract will end in a few weeks and I'll publicly ruin him."

"We can do better than that," I smirked.

" 'We'?" she echoed.

"Yes, 'we' can utterly _destroy_ him," I declared.

"And you think if I go along with this, I'll just fall into your arms and declare how much I love you?" she scoffed.

"No, but in time you will," I replied.

"What makes you so sure?" she smirked.

"Lust and physical pleasure are powerful things," I stated, touching the inside of her thigh and making her gasp a little, "I've already planted a seed a long time ago, and it's been festering under the surface. I can see it in your face. You either don't realise it or won't admit it, but I get under your skin. Your face flushes when I'm around and your breasts swell. Your body is conditioned to respond to me physically. It's only a matter of time before your mind and soul do too. This competition between Reiji and I will prove that."

2 hours later…

My face still stung from where she slapped me. But the important thing here is, she and Reiji are finished, and I now have leverage over him. He wasn't a genius businessman after all, he was only good for science experiments. He was a fake. I smirked at the fact that I was already proving to be the better man for Ruka. Daiki responded to my earlier text saying he'd found restaurant locations. By the time it was summer vacation, they'd be all set up and construction on the hotel resort would be starting.

My biggest concern right now was Reiji. Either he didn't suspect anything, or he was biding his time for his first move. If I was lucky, it was that first option, but the latter was more likely. Reiji is a lot of things, but he's not stupid. Not by a long shot. I needed to be prepared for whatever he had in store. There was another looming issue: my father. What was he planning? Svetlana was free from the mirror realm too, and Ruka was still too weak to face her. And without her abilities fully developed, it wasn't likely she would be if she came to face her any time soon. I needed to get stronger; for both our sakes…

 **Okay, bit of a boring chapter here guys. I'm sorry! But, the next chapter should definitely be more interesting. Laito and Ruka need to train to get their abilities in check, so I'll researching her to make that work. Feel free to give suggestions as well as plot ideas, I enjoy reading them in the reviews! :- ) I hope you're all looking forward to finding out what's going on with Karl Heinz, Svetlana and the founders!**


	11. Chapter 11- Training

Chapter 11: Power

I was sat in my club. The rehearsals for the 'Naughty Geisha' performance we were putting on in spring were long done. I was just sat, staring into space in an empty club. I stood up, reaching into my purse, and pulled out a few 'special' pills I'd been saving for a special occasion. I stood on the stage and started playing 'Don't stop the devil'-by Dead posey **(Listen if you wish ; ) )**.

I popped the pills into my mouth and started dancing to the music, using the stage pole to climb and spin up to the rafters where my Chinese silks for my 'Madame butterfly' routine were located. I floated around the air, spinning, twirling and pulling poses as the drugs kicked in and made the world around me more colourful. The juice hit my brain hard as 'Sweet dreams' by the Eurhymics played and I hung, lazily, upside down while wrapped in the silks. I sang along absently.

I felt another familiar presence in the room, and a bed of thorn less roses, rose up to greet my limp form. I giggled and started swinging back and forth. The roses followed.

"Darling, what are you doing?" Laito's voice asked, he sounded really far away.

"I'm dancing, and I'm being a graceful butterfly…" I giggled.

"You're going to hurt yourself like that," he cautioned, "Will you please come down safely, my little butterfly?"

"But I wanna keep dancing…!" I protested, pouting.

"How about you stand on the ground and dance with me?" he suggested, "We'll have a private ball for the queen of butterflies."

"But we're not dressed for a ball silly," I giggled, swinging more forcefully, making my head spin and I giggled loudly.

"The outfit you're in is more than fine for our ball, my queen," he replied, a hint of…worry? In his voice.

I let myself fall loose of my silks so that I could fly…and I did, straight into the arms of a prince. He looked shocked as he held me bridal style. I clapped my hands excitedly like a child.

"Wasn't that fun?" I laughed.

"For you, maybe, my queen," he sighed, putting me on the ground and holding one arm with one hand and another wrapped around my waist.

"If the prince doesn't like my dance party, he can leave the garden," I pouted.

"How about I make it up to you, my queen?" he said, leading me into a waltz.

"How?" I demanded.

"I give you a beautiful soft coffin of roses to rest in, once we're done dancing?" he suggested, "It'll be the perfect place for you to rest your head for a few days."

I groaned a little and said, "I am a little tired, but I'm not ready to sleep yet."

"We'll keep dancing until you do," he smiled, pulling me close.

I lay my head on his shoulder and our waltz turned into an awkward teenager at prom slow dance while I stood on top of his feet.

"What other dances can you do?" I asked sleepily.

"All kinds," he replied, stroking my hair.

"Mm…" was all I gave in response as my eyelids grew heavy.

Laito's P.O.V

She fell asleep in my arms, and I laid her down in the rose coffin in made for her. I moved her into the office, away from where people would see her immediately. I sealed the coffin with a lid of thorns and lavender to keep her asleep.

"I'm doing this for you my queen," I whispered, giving her one last kiss before I left her for a few days.

I teleported to the old castle we lived in back in the Edo period, long before I was born. This place had been abandoned for centuries, but we kept it as part of our heritage. It was abandoned not because it was old, or that one of the walls was broken in by canon fire, it's because of the silver in the building. It was over-run by hunters and they made it this way to weaken our family. Even standing here now, I could feel my powers weaken.

If I can control my powers in this environment, then I'll be unstoppable. I could feel a storm brewing above my head; nothing but rain. Why not make it more exciting? I smirked and reached out to the sky, feeling the energy in the air, and transferring my own over into the atmosphere. It was heavily draining, and I could feel it wasn't working as well as it did at the manor. The silver I injected myself with earlier probably wasn't helping my case. I gave up after 2 hours and drank some blood I'd brought with me. I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but that didn't make it any less frustrating. I needed to protect Ruka from the founders and my father. A war was coming, I could feel it…

Ruka's P.O.V.

I was aware of the passage of time outside my comatose state. I could feel Laito's presence through the roses. He was exerting himself too much, both physically and mentally. I could feel him in the room with more blood he'd been letting me drink from him while I was unconscious. He'd check in daily and erase suspicions among the staff at the club. It had been 4 weeks since I'd swallowed the silver pill to try and kill myself, I could still feel it in my system. I could feel electricity around Laito. I was drawn to it through the roses. I could feel the power, the energy; it was so _stimulating_.

I felt something, something in the very core of my being stir. The blood I'd drank from Laito early stir in its wake, this…darkness grew, the fire in my veins pulsed and over-threw the effects of the silver, neutralising it and it gradually disappeared completely. The energy swirled and grew, the lightning on Laito's end grew stronger and I reached out to him. He could feel me with him and he stopped. My presence pulsed. I could feel it move in time with my heart. I could see him now. His hair was still short and slicked back, but it had grown a little. He looked…sad.

I could feel two presences near my body; one familiar, one not familiar. Laito's face grew in shock when I communicated my distress to him. He was by my side in an instant. Reiji entered the room. I felt anger and rage flare up within me. He laughed as he could sense it. The woman next to him giggled and clung to his side. A mortal?! I used what energy I could to seize her body and smash her body repeatedly into the wall.

Her limp and lifeless body collapsed to the floor and Reiji sighed, "A shame. She'd have made a fine sample of a vampire. Such desirable traits. I've come for my fiancé, Laito, step aside."

"No," Laito's voice growled, "your contract is void, I won't let you have her."

"Are you challenging me, Laito?" he glowered.

"What if I am?" Laito challenged.

"You _are_ aware of our family history, aren't you?" Reiji taunted, "What _always_ happens when a younger brother challenges and older for the affections of a woman. And a _whore_ at that, in both cases."

"I'll agree with you on the fact that, _that woman_ , was a whore…" Laito growled, trying to keep his voice steady, "but I'll be damned if I let you say another word against Ruka!"

Reiji laughed, "Poor Laito, always falling in love with women who can never truly love you back."

" _Leave. Now!_ " he growled.

Reiji took a step forward and the anger that had been bubbling beneath the surface erupted. My eyes snapped open and I was enveloped inside a purple flame.

" _GET OUT_!" I yelled.

The colour drained from his face and his mouth hung open as I spread my aura towards him in an attempt to suffocate him. He teleported away before I could finish the job. I collapsed to the floor and Laito rushed towards me.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who has become more powerful," he grinned, helping me up, "Are you okay, my queen?"

"I'm fine," I replied curlty.

He kissed my hand and said, "We can kill our parents now, maybe even the founders."

"But not alone," I commented.

"What do you propose we do then?" he asked.

"I say…we bring your brother Shu out of exile once again and partner with the Mukami's," I replied.

"Why the Mukami's?" he asked.

I looked at him and grinned, "Ever heard of inside men?"

"They stopped being useful to my father months ago," he answered.

"The fact that they're still alive would serve as proof otherwise," I countered, "we need whatever information they can offer us, and the numbers to our ranks won't hurt either. They may have a purpose for us in future."

"They won't allow themselves to be used," he protested.

"Then we leave them to their own devices and they can suffer at the hands of the founders as their alternative?" I pointed out, "You have so little faith in me Laito."

"I'll leave the details to you then, but for now…" he replied, giving me a hungry look, "It's been too long since I last had you; let's dance, my queen."

 **All-out war on its way, a fight for Ruka's hand in the near future and the Mukami's fighting for their survival once again. Leave your comments, questions, recommendations and reviews and I'll read them when I get 5 minutes. Sorry for the wait, I've been in a bad space with writing but hopefully this shouldn't last too long.**


	12. Chapter 12-The Mukami Brothers

Chapter 12: The Mukami brothers

I was slapped across the face and sent out of the club with instructions to collect Shu from the North Pole. So, I prepared to do just that, but as I did so, I got a call from Daiki.

"What news do you have for me?" I asked, as I packed my bag.

"The hotel's construction is going ahead of schedule, sir," he reported, "Your graduation was only a week ago, but the hotel is being erected at a break-neck pace! The workers are alternating between night and day shifts, but surely they shouldn't be this quick?"

I grinned, the familiars were working well among the construction company, "Maybe the company is just _extremely_ efficient?"

"Yes, sir, but the inspectors will be extra thorough to see if it is structurally sound since it's going up so fast," he continued, "especially since the design is so ornate. It looks beautiful, sir, what inspired such a design?"

"It just came to me," I replied vaguely, remembering Ruka's face.

"I'll be out of the country for a few days to visit one of my brothers, I trust you can handle the situation while I'm gone?"

"Yes, sir," he replied, "Oh, by the way, the jewellers called, your customised order is being handled as we speak."

I smiled, "Good, and the restaurant reviews?"

"Positive so far, sir," he answered, "The profits are modest but steady, it should increase once word of mouth gets around and the chefs have undergone their training. You'll be a very rich man independent of your family name soon enough, I'm sure of it!"

I played with the metallic ring on my finger once more, "Don't jinx it."

"My apologies, sir, have a good trip," he replied, "Oh, and sir; happy birthday."

I hung up and grabbed my bag, heading to the car that would take me to the family private jet. Time to collect Shu…

Ruka's P.O.V.

I took a deep breath and stepped onto the Mukami brother's property a few days later. The air rippled with my aura, informing them a stranger was on the property. I could feel them shifting about the house, preparing for the worst from their unexpected guest. I smiled and walked towards their parlour to wait for them. They hunted around the property, trying to find me; the turned aren't as good at locating as purebloods are, only with their own kind are they accurate. I made some tea and sat waiting for them. I sipped from my cup delicately as I waited.

Ruki Mukami was the first to arrive, Kou, Azusa and Yuma soon followed.

"Who the hell are you?" Yuma barked.

"Now, now, is that anyway to great a guest?" I smirked.

"What do you want Miss Nikorov?" Ruki asked, sceptical.

"I came to strike a deal with you lovely gentleman," I smiled, gesturing for them to sit, "tea?"

They turned down my offer for tea, but sat down anyway.

"What kind of deal?" Kou asked immediately.

"One that involves the death of Karlheinz and the founders, once and for all," I replied honestly.

"What?!" Yuma snapped, "Why would we help you do that? That man saved us, we owe him our lives!"

"You owe him nothing and you are disposable pawns to him," I replied, setting down my cup.

"You take that back…" Azusa growled.

I smiled, "If it weren't true…why hasn't he contacted you since the Adam and Eve experiment failed?"

They fell silent and looked to the floor. I sighed heavily and looked at them with sympathetic eyes, "He saved you all so he could use you. All of us; even his own sons, are just his guinea pigs for his sick biology experiment. Now he plans to do… _something_ , I'm not certain what, that will eliminate us all because our usefulness has run dry."

" 'Us'?" Ruki asked, "What has he done to you?"

I paused and looked away, my jaw set, "He released my mother from where she was trapped, and forced her to demonstrate what I was capable of doing, but couldn't at the time. He now intends to begin his experiments afresh, using my mother as a catalyst."

"So…is your mother going to help us?" Azusa asked.

I threw my head back and laughed, "Even if she was, I'd slaughter that bitch on sight."

They looked at me in shock and I smiled, "Am I to take it that you're on board?"

They looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Good," I replied, standing up, "I'll be back tomorrow night to help during the blood moon, should anything happen. The founders are likely to strike."

"Why don't you just stay over? We can prepare a guest room," Kou offered.

I smiled, "That's sweet of you, my dear, but I have business with the Sakamaki's to take care of before the evening is out."

"You're putting us in alliance with the Sakamaki's?!" Yuma snapped, jumping to his feet, "No fucking way!"

I sighed, turned to him and put a hand on his cheek and moved a strand of hair from his face, "Yuma darling, this is a war that's coming," and then looking him in the eye, "none of us really have a choice."

He looked taken aback and I removed my hand, "There will be benefits to you all once this is over; independence from the finances of the Sakamaki, permanent ownership of this manor; no strings attached of course. I've already seen to it that this is the case. There will be other things too, but most importantly; you get you lives back."

They looked at me in amazement, and Ruki spoke, "How do we know that you're just not another Karlheinz?"

I smiled at him, "Then feel free to kill me."

They looked at me in utter shock, "Ta-ta!" I breathed, disappearing in the black mist I was now accustomed too.

I teleported to the mansion and Laito was waiting for me, along with Shu and the other brothers except for Reiji.

"Good to see you back with us Shu," I smiled.

"So, you're the one causing Reiji to keep his distance?" he asked.

"Well, I _do_ scare him quite a bit these days," I chuckled, then looking at them all, "the Mukami's have agreed to help with the founder's situation, I'll be going over there tomorrow to help them should they try to pick them off."

"Why bring them into this?" Kanato asked, "One of them hurt teddy…"

"They're inside information about your fathers last movements and what he was intending to do after the Adam and Eve project will be invaluable," I replied, "plus, the additional numbers won't hurt in dealing with them, especially since my mother is on the scene."

"Why not just bring them here so that we're all together?" Yui asked.

"Can you honestly see these guys being willing to live under the same roof as them?" I pointed out.

She looked down in thought and I looked back at Shu, "I know you've only just arrived back, but we honestly need you here. And, if what I've heard about you through the grapevine is true, you'll be valuable in the fight." Then to all of them, "Tomorrow is the blood moon, when we're at our weakest and they're at their strongest, rest up. You'll need your strength."

"Are you going back to them?" Laito demanded as I turned to leave.

I looked over my shoulder at him, "What I do with my life, is none of your damn business."

I walked out of the manor and he chased after me once I was in the garden, "I won't allow it!"

"Allow what?" I sighed, rolling my eyes.

"Yui's vision to come true," he said, grabbing my wrist roughly, "they've gone from seeing the past to seeing the future too. If I let you go to them…" his grip tightened, "they'll fall in love with you too."

"You don't love me Laito, you love the idea of me," I replied, trying to free myself from his grasp, "a child in love with the idea of love, just like everyone else."

"Then if this isn't love I'm feeling, what _is_ love?" he pleaded, looking at me with a pained expression.

I looked at him wide eyed. I couldn't answer him, because I didn't know either. So, all I said in return was, "Let me go, now, Laito." In barely a whisper.

He loosened his grip on my wrist and I turned away and he continued, "I'd kill for you, you're the only one who makes me feel complete. It doesn't matter what I've done in the past or currently, you've been there to see or know most of it, often doing something madder than I could imagine, or enduring something I could never imagine. I love you, Ruka, I really do."

Silence. I teleported away. I returned to my empty crypt. I'd never felt as alone as I did right then. My 'brothers' were dead, the man I had loved was gone from my life and all that was left was Laito, standing on the other side of my life thinking he loved me. I pitied him. I was a few centuries older than him, but the way he acted, you would never have thought it. I crawled into my cold empty coffin, and, for the first time since I was a small child, I cried myself to sleep…

The next evening, I returned to the Mukami mansion. I was getting weaker as the blood moon loomed overhead. The brothers were minding their own business respectively, and I made my way to the library to entertain myself. I loved literature, it was an old forgotten hobby of mine. I browsed around the shelves at a leisurely pace until I stumbled across an old favourite of mine; 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall'. An original too, this one was still printed under Anne Bronte's pen name 'Acton Bell'.

I'd been sat for a while undisturbed, when Yuma burst into the room…

Yuma's P.O.V.

She was lounging on the couch in jeans and a white t-shirt smoking a cigarette, but somehow, she made it look…elegant. She looked at me curiously over the edge of her book.

"You don't strike me as the type to leisurely read a book, Yuma," she chuckled in that sultry voice of hers, "am I right to assume you needed me for something?"

I scowled and said, "You're awfully relaxed considering the situation we're all in."

"No point in panicking," she shrugged, taking a drag of her cigarette and setting the book down, "may as well enjoy the peace while it lasts."

I scoffed, "Why are purebloods so cavalier in nature?"

She teleported closer to me and looked me straight in the eyes with a serious expression then, she smiled gently, "I thought I recognised you from somewhere, Edgar."

I was shocked. How did she…?

"Know your name?" she chuckled, "I met you once, a long time ago when you were still a child, and human at that."

I stared at her and she continued, "I'm sorry about what happened to your home. No one deserves that. I met you one day by pure chance, I'd managed to escape my home that day and I was singing by the stream. You followed the noise and caught me. You surprised me and I ran away."

"I remember now!" I cried, "That young girl, was you?"

"Yeah, I believe I ran into Kou or 'Emelio', as he was known back then, not too long afterwards," she continued, smiling sadly.

"You said you escaped your home, what did you have to escape from? A dinner party with the finest?" I sneered.

Her face darkened and before she could answer a loud crash resounded from the entrance. They were here. We looked at each other and nodded, teleporting to the entrance. Dozens of angry, snarling wolves filled the entry way. Azusa was already injured, but he was still able to fight. Kou and Ruki were trying to defend themselves against the onslaught of wolves.

"On your left!" she cried, allowing me time to dodge, "I'll help Azusa!"

I nodded and she ran over to help him as I wrestled with one of the wolves. I managed to throw it at the wall and crush its skull. Another one launched itself at me and I narrowly dodged. Ruki and Kou were starting to get over-whelmed by the sheer number of them on the other side of the room. Ruki was about to have one land right on top of him when it was suddenly enveloped in purple and black flames.

We all looked at Ruka who was stood in the centre of the room, surrounded by the remaining wolves. There was a dark purple aura around her and she stared them all down as they snarled and snapped at her. She sent a wave of the aura towards them all that invaded the entire room and caused my chest to constrict. Their snarling immediately ceased and they started to whimper like puppies, rather than wolves. They faded away and she removed the aura and proceeded to help Azusa up onto his feet.

"What was that?" Kou asked, bewildered.

"A scouting force, they'll not bother us now that they have something to report," she answered, "they wanted to see how strong we were. I bet they're doing the same to the Sakamaki's."

"That's not what I was talking about," Kou explained, "what was that power?!"

"Shadow magic, it runs in my family," she answered, "the only drawback is…it uses…a lot of energy…"

She collapsed after finishing her sentence and I caught her before she hit her head on the floor.

"The blood moon's effect must be harsh on her when she uses her abilities," Ruki observed, "let's put her in a guest room so she can recover. She saved us tonight."


	13. Chapter 13-Private affairs

Chapter 13: Private Affairs

I awoke in a room with which I was unfamiliar and Kou curled up asleep next to me on my left and Yuma on the right. Well, this is a situation that fills me with nostalgia. I sat up in the bed and noticed I was in an over-sized shirt that did not belong to me.

"Well, well, I never thought you boys would be the type…" I said to myself.

I looked at the clock on the wall, 1pm. Damn I was up far too early. I felt Kou stir and put an arm across me. I stroked his hair and he smiled in his sleep. Yuma on the other hand was more ballsy in his sleep than he was awake. He moved in his sleep so that his face was buried in my breasts. I chuckled lightly and sat back, letting them both sleep. Yuma kept nuzzling his face into my boobs but it relaxed me, so I didn't mind.

After an hour of lightly dozing, Yuma stirred and groggily woke up and I smiled at him sleepily. His eyes widened when he realised what he'd been doing and his face went red. He moved away and sat with his back to me, clearly embarrassed.

I stretched a little and continued stroking Kou's hair and said, "No need to be embarrassed of subconscious desires for, and I quote, 'squishy, soft goodness'."

"I said that?!" he hissed, trying not to wake Kou.

"Yup," I chuckled, "you're a real closet pervert."

"I'm not a closet pervert!" he denied.

"Fine, just a pervert then," I shrugged, looking at Kou, "he's so peaceful when he sleeps…like a little baby…"

"Yeah…he's one of the older ones, but he's really childish." Yuma commented.

"I enjoy this level of innocence in people," I admitted, "it's a rare quality, even in humans."

"The world's a cruel place," Yuma replied, "not many come out untainted from it."

"Don't I know it…" I muttered, more to myself than him.

"Huh?" he asked.

I shook my head, "Never mind, I have work tonight. I need to rest."

"Where do you work?" he asked.

"Lounge Noir," I answered.

"A bar?" he scoffed.

I shrugged, "Of sorts, you should swing by."

He scoffed and looked away, and I went back to sleep.

Later that night, I woke up, showered, got dressed in a little black number I brought with me to the residence and ate 'breakfast' with the boys before leaving for work. A car driven by a familiar picked me up and dropped me off at the bar. I hadn't performed in front of an audience for a while, I was looking forward to tonight's performance. I walked into my dressing room and proceeded to get ready for the show. I did my usual sultry make-up with my signature red lip and changed into the lingerie I'd be wearing on stage tonight with the chiffon kimono jacket I'd ordered in.

I checked in with the band to make sure 'Welcome to burlesque' was in their music sheets, along with 'Tough Lover'; it was. Next was the DJ and special effects guy, he was all set, so I settled down backstage with a glass of prosecco while Cherry threw a diva tantrum about not using her make-up brushes or curling iron.

I rolled my eyes at her childish behaviour and polished off my drink as I waited for opening time. The customers started arriving and the girls opened up the show with one of our 'naughty Geisha' routines as I prepared backstage to appear in a martini glass like Dita von Teese. As I put a diamond choker around my neck, I spotted Laito in the VIP area sipping champagne and looking over some documents. I tutted and scowled as I made my way to the martini glass.

The girls finished and the band started playing 'Welcome to Burlesque'. The crowd cheered loudly when they realised I was performing and those whom were at the bar grabbed their drinks and rushed back to their seats. I performed my number and as I strutted off the stage as money was flung forward and the stage hands collected it up, I noticed a little lamb fixated on the stage. A shy and plain looking young woman who was sipping a cocktail nervously. I could see from the ring on her finger she was married, on her face was a bright red blush. I looked at her and grinned before I walked off the stage to prepare for the second part of my performance.

Laito had sent roses to my dressing room and a wicked idea formed in the back of my mind. I plucked a single fragrant rose from the batch, snipped off its thorns and instructed a staff member to send it to the woman. I scattered the petals around the room, tore up Laito's card and through it in the bin and got ready for the second half of my performance.

Latex was a popular fetish among my audience members and that was the outfit I'd decided upon for my next number; a latex push-up bra and waist trainer underwear. Cherry was on stage performing a number to 'Diamonds are a girls' best friend', and as usual, she was being over-the-top, but clients liked her because she wore very skimpy costumes, another popular fetish at the club. Little lamb was shifting from foot to foot, her blush even deeper. I looked her over more closely; she was secretly touching herself. I grinned; a closet pervert-my favourite.

I sang and performed my routine to 'Tough lover' and I saw her grow in her discomfort. I exited the stage and found she had moved. I grinned; perfect. I arrived back at my office and found her stood awkwardly there, shifting from foot to foot.

"I got your rose," she said shyly, "I wondered…why did you send it to me?"

I smirked at her, "Because you're hot and I wanna do bad things to you."

She blushed even harder and replied, "I'm…married."

"And you're clearly unhappy, and your husband hasn't touched you in a while, probably because he has a mistress on the side, I can tell," I replied, "How about _I_ touch you so much it'll make up for all the time he's neglected you?"

I moved closer to her small frame. I towered over this girl and I started touching her over her underwear. She let out a cute cry and covered her hand over her mouth, I removed it with my other hand and pressed more firmly on her clit.

"You can cry out as much as you want, no one can hear your moans here," I whispered huskily as I pushed her gently to the floor and started removing her clothes.

I massaged her breasts and ran my tongue across her torso, causing her to shiver with pleasure and stifle a moan. I sucked her coral pink nipples gently and stuck one finger inside her and twisted it around, alternating between slow and fast before changing it to a 'come hither' movement and stimulating her g-spot. She cried out and I stuck a second finger in, stretching her open further, then adding a third. My fingers were growing slick from her cum, she was about to climax so I began thrusting my fingers in and out harder. Her clit was aroused and sensitive, so once I'd gotten her to climax the first time, I want down and licked and sucked it gently, building up a rhythm that sent her over the edge. I could taste her cum and proceeded to massage her breasts. She was practically screaming my name and begging me to touch her more, she asked if I would do this for her all the time. She'd climaxed from my touch once more and her vagina was twitching from the stimulation; she was ready for my next move.

Reaching into a draw of my desk I pulled out a strap on dildo and a clit stimulator with my very own 'special lube' that was designed to make the inside of the vagina tingle pleasantly to reach the big 'O'. I tipped I load into her depraved hole and began fucking her with the strap on. She was wild and over the edge. Saliva formed at the corner of her mouth and she was panting like an animal in heat, she was crying out with each rough thrust, I placed the clit stimulator over her extremely sensitive clit and lifted her legs over her head so I could pound her deeper. She screamed and kept cumming with each new thrust, she was begging me not to stop. I kissed her roughly and thrust my tongue into her mouth, she reciprocated hungrily. Eventually we switched positions and she got on top to control her stimulation I watched her bounce up and down on the toy with a mixture of amazement and amusement. She collapsed after 20 minutes, spent.

I rolled her over onto her stomach and lifted her ass towards me. I began licking and teasing her hole and she squirmed a little. Too tired to fight me. I flicked my tongue inside and she groaned loudly as I alternated my tongue between her vagina and clit and her ass.

"Let me eat you out," she begged, breathless, "I wanna taste you…"

I shook my head, "You've had enough."

Just then, Laito stormed into the room, flung me away from her and grabbed her by the throat. He sunk his teeth into her and drained her of blood. During this time, I composed myself, freshened up in the bathroom, put on a robe and lit a cigarette while I waited for him to finish.

He grimaced as soon as he'd polished off the last of her blood.

"God damn that was awful," he muttered, "it's a good thing I was so thirsty."

"Why'd you do that?" I asked, "I was having fun."

"I can't have my queen looking at anyone but me," he replied.

I scoffed, "You're a fool."

He slammed me against the wall, knocking the wind out of me and I dropped my cigarette. He stubbed it out into the carpet as he pinned my arms to my side and kissed me forcefully. He was yanked away from me by strong arms and I was held safely by someone else.

"Get off our sister!" Azusa cried, charging at him with a silver knife.

He dodged ang Kou kicked him in the spine, Ruki charged at him, punching him straight in the face. Laito, unused to physical fights, was being beaten to a pulp. I looked to see that Yuma was holding onto me.

"That's enough!" I yelled, "We need him alive!"

They stepped back and Yuma helped me to my feet.

"Are you okay, nii-chan?" Kou asked.

"I'm fine Kou, I was just surprised," I replied, then looking at Laito, "I suggest you leave."

He snickered as his eye swelled up and his nose started to realign itself, "I might need to keep a physical leash on my dear wife, she has a knack for bending men to her will."

"Get out!" I snapped.

He laughed, "I'll see you soon, my darling."

He left, limping and Yuma turned to me, "What _is_ your relationship with that guy? Do you have a thing going on or something?"

"I have no idea what label to give our 'relationship'…but it's…complicated," I replied vaguely, "we're allies for sure, and that's all that really matters."

"You're lying sis," Kou replied, his truth-seeking red eye glowing.

"GET OUT!" I screamed, causing the building to shake and the glass windows of my windows to rattle.

I sank down into the chaise lounge and sighed heavily, my head in my hands. They weren't leaving. Instead all I felt were four sets of arms wrapped around me.

"We're not going anywhere, sis," Azusa said.

"Come on, let's go home for the evening," Ruki said.

"Yeah, you must be pretty tired after all that dancing," Kou winked, "pretty hot stuff!"

Yuma helped me up and said, "Put some clothes on, we'll wait outside for you."

I did as they suggested. I pulled on a jumper and some jeans with some heels and left the office. Yuma and Kou put an arm on my back protectively and we returned to the Mukami mansion together. Upon arrival to the manor, I returned to the room I was using and locked the door. I drew a hot bath and climbed in. I lay there, soaking for a while and I mulled over the events of the evening. Brothers, eh? Not my first rodeo at adoptive families, but these guys felt different from the dozens of others that came before.

I remembered the adopted siblings I've had before them, it hasn't ended well. I shook my head and sank further into the water. No. I can't go through this again. I won't play happy families on a permanent basis anymore. There was a knock at the door.

"Sis! Can I come in?" Kou asked.

"Sure," I called, I had no qualms on being seen naked.

He entered the bathroom in his bathrobe. He had a small blush on his face.

"I wanted to take a bath with my big sis!" he stated sheepishly.

"Knock yourself out, kid," I shrugged, moving my legs back to make room for him.

He disrobed and climbed in, grinning like an idiot.

"This is the first time I've had a bath with a sibling," he smiled sweetly, "want me to wash your back?"

I shrugged and turned so he could do so. He picked up a sponge and started washing my back.

"Hey, you have a lot of really faded scars on your back sis," he commented.

"They're from where my family would torture me," I replied honestly, "if my sister were still alive, she'd have the same marks."

I turned and gesture that I wanted to wash his back for him and continued, "They'd strap us both into torture devices most mortals hadn't even seen, so many don't know they exist. The injuries healed, but they were from silver, so the marks never truly fade."

"That's awful sis…" he muttered, leaning back against my chest.

I stroked his hair, "It was centuries ago, Kou, and most of them are dead by mine and my sister's hand."

We got out of the bath and dried off. After pulling on some pyjamas we walked back into my room. My eyes widened in shock; Ruki, Yuma and Azusa were all sound asleep on my extra-large bed in their pyjamas.

"We were all worried about you," Kou explained, "so we decided to have a sleep over!"

I shook my head and grinned, "You boys are insane!"

He grinned and grabbed my hand, "Let's get some sleep! At least this way we can guarantee Laito won't turn up and try to take you."

I was too tired to argue, so I just nodded and climbed into the bed with him and my 'brothers'. I guess, for now, I can pretend.


	14. Chapter 14-Oh, how we love our mothers

Chapter 14: Oh, how we love our mothers

I awoke in my bed earlier than usual. After Ruka's antics the previous night, I'd come home in a foul mood and killed many familiars in my rage. I shrugged off the corpse that was lying next to me and proceeded to wash of the dried blood in the shower. I exited the shower after a few minutes and wrapped a towel around me as I dried my hair. I got a call from Daiki. The hotel was complete. I needed to go over and advise on the décor.

I dressed in a suit and made my way over. The inside was huge and grand, just the way I wanted it to be, the bar was polished mahogany, the casino was filled with slot machines, blackjack and poker tables, roulette tables and pool tables. There was a huge indoor and outdoor swimming pool, an ornate spa and the inside was supported by ornate marble pillars and the floor was a giant mosaic of the ocean and sea creatures, the stairs were made of the same marble as the pillars and carpeted in blue, the top 3 floors were reserved as a condo for mine and Ruka's personal use.

"I want crystal chandeliers in the main all of the condo's rooms, and in the main lobby of the hotel," I explained, "All beds are to have soft mattresses and silk sheets, except in the condo, then they are to be satin."

"Yes, sir," the designer nodded, taking notes.

"I want only the finest quality leather on all couches, chairs and stools," I continued, "Egyptian cotton bath towels and robes for _all_ guests, and as for the furniture in the Condo; I want it to be very sleek and modern, with traditional Japanese aspects to the décor. For the other guests, it will be a western approach."

"Of course," the designer bowed, before hurrying off to exact the changes.

I turned to the stylist I'd hired, "My wife's wardrobe I will leave to you. I don't care about the price, the quantity or the brand; sexy underwear-red or black lace is always welcome, and her clothes must me sophisticated and elegant. She likes to exude confidence and is a huge fan of heels- especially Louis-Vuitton's."

"Consider it done," the stylist grinned.

Everything needs to be perfect.

"Sir, your order has been delivered and we've prepared the box for you to put it in," Daiki announced.

"Perfect," I grinned.

Just as things were starting to look up, I felt a presence I was certain I would never feel again. It felt similar to Ruka physically, but spiritually it felt similar to-

"Hello, Laito," her voice cooed, "I see you're growing into _such_ a fine man."

 _Her_.

I turned around with a look of disgust on my face, "Hello Cordelia."

"So, cold," she pouted, feigning hurt, "I've died twice for you and _this_ is how you treat me?"

"What are you doing in Heidi's body?" I demanded.

"Oh? Svetlana and I are old friends, she let me use this girls body," she chuckled, "It's nice being a young teenager again."

"Why are you here?" I asked coldly.

"To be with my darling boy again," she answered, moving closer to me, "Why don't we have dinner? We can have fun like the good old days."

She stroked my arm playfully but I pulled away.

"Don't you still love me, Laito?" she pouted.

"There's only one woman I love, and have ever loved," I replied.

She smirked and seemed pleased until I opened my mouth and finished my sentence, "Ruka. You're just a cheap tramp good for a quick bang. I see why my father was so quickly bored of you."

" _How. DARE YOU!" she screamed, drawing the attention of onlookers._

" _Nothing to see_ _here, get back to work_!" I snapped, dragging Cordelia away from prying eyes.

Once we were outside and out of both ear-shot and sight I turned to face her.

"What I felt for you back then, was _not_ love, as you had taught me," I said, "and you never loved me. I was just your toy; convenient and amusing. I don't care if you're part of the founder's plan or not, _I refuse to have you run my life anymore_!"

She dodged my attack and teleported away. Before I could track her and go after her, Svetlana appeared before me.

"That wretched child of mine…she has her hooks in you too!" she growled, "She always does this; seduces men for her own advantage. No matter…I don't care if Karl wants you alive; I'll kill you myself!"

I dodged her assault of fireballs and teleported to the old Edo period manor. She followed a few moments later. I fired a range of thorns at her and one struck her in the shoulder. She teleported behind me and grabbed my suit, throwing me into the wall. Her shadow tentacles struck me and pierced through my body. I collapsed to the floor, my vision blurry. All I could see at this moment was her aura of shadows writhing around her frame. With the last of my strength, I summoned a fortress of vines around her. She was trapped and slowly being crushed to death. There was a flash of purple light and a horrific scream, once it had gone, all that remained was a small hand mirror falling to the ground. The glass shattered and a wave of light rushed towards me. I felt my wounds heal, but my body was weak. I could hear someone calling my name in the distance.

I felt my body being held by someone. I opened my eyes and saw a flash of silver and peach eyes full of worry.

"Laito!" the voice said, offering their neck, "Come on! Drink up or you'll die!"

I was so thirsty, I sunk my teeth in deep. The blood was rich and sweet, I could taste the ancestry of it. This was blood of the highest pureblood calibre. It sated me rather quickly and I felt my strength return. I healed the injury with my saliva and looked at my saviour again.

"Ruka?!" I cried, surprised.

"Yeah, I knew something was wrong when Cordelia came to face me in my mother's stead," she replied, "What were you thinking?! Taking on my mother like that! You do realise if I didn't show up when I did, you'd be chopped liver for dogs, right?"

She hugged me close; something I did not expect. I wrapped my arms around her tightly and climbed on top of her. She didn't move to push me away, she just held me, and that's how we stayed until I felt hot tears roll down her cheek. I moved to look at her but she held firm.

"Don't look at me!" she shrieked, "You have no right! No right at all to disobey me!"

I was stunned. What was going on? I rolled so I was on my back, but she kept her face buried deep into my shoulder. I looked up at the sky and stroked her hair. The stars were beautiful tonight. I lay there and let her sob, unsure of what I was feeling. She eventually stopped and I teleported us to her room. I carried her to her bathroom and drew us both a bath in her large jacuzzi tub. I put salts and calming essential oils in it. I undressed us both and placed her in front of me in the bath. I lay back behind her and she sat in front, her legs tucked up to her chin. I washed myself and her back. She turned around to face me and straddled me. She began washing the blood and dirt off my face. I searched her face as she did this. She seemed to have calmed down, but her eyes were puffy and full of worry and regret.

"What's wrong, my queen?" I asked, cocking my head.

She sighed heavily, "I'm sorry."

I looked at her quizzically, "For what, my love?"

"Everything," she replied, "getting you involved with this fight, having to deal with my mother trying to kill you, killing _your_ mother and robbing you of the opportunity to…and…disregarding how you felt…"

"What?" I asked.

"When Cordelia attacked me in Heidi's body…" she continued, "she was furious. She kept screaming about how I'd stolen her toy, how she couldn't get you back because of me. I realised then…if your first can't get you back…then what you must feel, must be pretty strong…"

"Ruka…" I breathed, placing a hand on her back.

"The past few weeks with the Mukami's has made me realise that…people _do_ care about me," she continued, "and…it feels…nice…I realised, if this many people care about me, I should give it a chance and not turn them away."

"Ruka, are you saying…?" I asked, looking her in the eye.

"I'm saying I'm willing to accept how you feel Laito, but I'm unsure of where I stand in feeling about you," she replied.

I looked at her in surprise, and I could feel happiness flood through me. I kissed her deeply and for once she reciprocated. I was _so_ in love with this woman.

"Ruka…" I breathed, "I _swear_ I'll make you happy."

"How about we…start off fresh?" she gulped, blushing a little. So adorable.

"~Of course," I smirked, cupping her breasts, "whatever you desire."

"Hold me tonight then," she said, her blush deepening, "and…don't try _anything_!"

"If that will make you happy, so be it," I smiled, kissing her forehead, "I know a movie on Netflix you'd probably like."

"Sounds good," she replied curtly, "we'll finish up here and do that."

"Okay," I grinned, picking up the sponge to clean the dirt off her breasts.

"I'll make this perfectly clear Laito; this could end badly for you," she warned, "there's nothing romantic about unrequited love, so if I decide I don't want to be with you, I want you to stop worshiping me the way you have done. Do you understand?"

"I'll try," I answered half-heartedly.

"No Laito, if you can't promise me that; I'll move so far away you'll never find me again," she countered.

I sighed heavily, "Very well, I promise."

I stuck out my pinkie finger for a pinkie promise, and we sealed it that way.

"I want you to promise me something," I said seriously, as we got out of the bath, dried off and put on our robes.

"What is it?" she asked, as she headed towards the bedroom drying her hair with a towel.

She sat down in the middle of the bed and I leaned across her, this time _I_ was the one doing the straddling. I cupped her chin with my fingers and tilted her face towards me.

"If you decide you want to be with me after this trial of ours," I continued, "you'd better do so under the realisation that I fully intend to marry you in the future."

Her eyes widened as she stared at me. I smirked and moved away.

"I'll put the movie on," I stated, moving towards the TV, "Do you mind me sleeping in my underwear tonight? Or do you have some PJ's I could borrow?"

"I think I still have some of my brother's old PJ's lying around the crypt somewhere," she replied, slipping on some negligee and a thong.

I swallowed hard, "Nah, actually it's pretty warm tonight. I'll sleep in my boxers."

"Okay," she shrugged, lighting a cigarette.

I started the movie and moved to join her on the bed. She snuggled into me and I wrapped and arm around her shoulder and placed the sheets over our bodies. She stubbed out the last of her cigarette in the ashtray near her side of the bed with an elegant motion of her wrist. Her breasts moved lightly with the gesture. Damn they looked good in that negligee. I swallowed hard once again and shifted slightly, sinking deeper into the bed pillows.

"You okay?" she asked, genuinely concerned and unaware of what magic she'd performed on my nether regions.

"Yeah, just getting comfy," I replied casually, smiling to hide my discomfort.

She turned her attention back to the movie and I could smell the essential oils on her skin that was now glistening with sweat from the heat. How badly I wanted to ravage that body right now. My dick ached in my pants painfully. We were only half-way through the movie at this point, and I _really_ needed to relieve myself-in more ways than one.

"I need the bathroom," I said urgently, standing up, "no need to pause. I've seen this one before."

She shrugs and lights another cigarette. The aroma of tobacco and lavender from the rolling paper filled the room and I dashed into the bathroom. As soon as the door was shut I yanked off my pants and started furiously rubbing my cock over the toilet bowl. It felt _amazing_ after over an hour of neglect. I thought only of her in my moment of depravity. The fact I'd been reduced to such a primitively lewd act turned on my masochistic side. It wasn't long before I finished up and I could clean up after my 'activity'. That level of pent up arousal is bound to come out quickly.

Once I'd finished I came back into the bedroom and found her asleep on the bed. I turned off the TV, the lights and curled up next to her. She smelled of cigarettes and vanilla oil. I fell asleep with a huge grin on my face that night, and chuckled a little at the irony that our 'love' of our mother's, was what lead to this happening…


	15. Chapter 15-Orange Blossoms

Chapter 15: Orange blossoms

I woke up the next night before Ruka and discovered I had a missed call from Daiki. He left a message so I listened to it while Ruka was still snuggled into me.

' _Mr Sakamaki, it's me, I'm calling to let you know that the decorators have finished in record time at your request and uh, the condo is set up just the way you asked. The staff will be prepared for your inspection this evening._ '

I sent him a message saying I'd be bringing my wife, so everything had better be perfect. A few minutes later he sent a confirmation text. I stretched lazily before delicately moving away from Ruka's hold on my torso. I showered and changed. Ruka was already awake and lying in bed lazily rubbing the sleep from her eyes. I scoop her up bridal-style and kiss her good morning.

"Get dressed in something nice, I'm taking you somewhere," I explained.

"Where?" she asked sleepily.

"It's a surprise," I winked.

"How nicely dressed are we talking?" she asked as I set her down and she padded to the bathroom.

"Like you're a wealthy heiress attending a formal dinner, nice," I replied.

She threw me a quizzical look over her shoulder but slinked away into the bathroom nonetheless. I waited in the room for her, fixing myself a gin and tonic.

She stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later and into her walk-in wardrobe. She emerged after half an hour of me nursing my drink and my jaw nearly hit the floor; hair pinned up into a messy bun, a long black dress with a side slit revealing she was in a suspender belt with stockings if she moved a certain way and silver heels. She put on some pearl earrings and turned to face me after applying some red lipstick and grabbing her purse.

"Shall we then?" she smiled.

I finished the last of my drink and grabbed my jacket. I put a hand on the small of her back and escorted her to the car that was waiting for us.

The car sped off towards the hotel and I refused to let her look out the window to see where we were going. Once we had arrived, I helped her out of the car and covered her eyes as I guided her up the steps leading to the hotel lobby where the staff were waiting. They gazed in awe at her and I grinned.

"Can I open my eyes _now_?" she asked once I removed my hand.

"Yes," I answered.

She opened her eyes and gasped. She gazed around the room in awe.

After a few minutes she looked at me, "What is this place?"

"It's my new business, and our new home," I smiled, "come, I'll show you around."

I took her hand and lead the way to the condo, showing her the casino on the way. The elevator took us to our floor with the aid of our key card.

She became giddy at the sight of the place and I watched as she ran about the place, exploring every nook and cranny, she gazed in wonder at it all before flinging herself onto the plush sofa bed in the cinema room, I followed her in grinning.

"So, _this_ is what you've been up to?!" she giggled.

"Yup," I grinned, "Do you like it?"

"I love it!" she grinned, hugging a soft pillow close to her body.

"I'm glad, because it's ours," I said, "come on, dinner is served downstairs."

It was all our favourites served in a booth table in the bar/dining area with macaroons for dessert and plenty of alcohol in between. She snuggled close to me and I never felt happier. I saw male members of staff staring at her in awe and I made eye contact with them as I kissed her, they looked away and I grinned.

"What are you so happy about?" she asked, looking at me.

"It doesn't matter my dear," I smiled.

She shrugged and polished off the rest of her champagne.

I nudged her and said, "I have one more surprise for you."

She gave me a look but nodded, and I took her back to the condo, leading her delicately by the hand. The door of the elevator opened on the condo floor and the smell of citrus flooded our noses.

"Why does it smell like oranges all of a sudden?" she asked, stepping into the room curiously.

She gasped at the surprise I had waiting for her; orange blossoms _everywhere._

"What _is_ all this?" she asked, mouth agape.

"Orange blossoms," I replied, "to protect my future bride's purity."

"You're still on that," she laughed.

I gave her a stern look, "Of course I am, you're the only one for me."

She rolled her eyes and continued to smell the flowers. I hugged her from behind and rested my chin on her head.

"Do you like it, my Queen?" I whispered.

"Yes…" she replied quietly.

I kissed the top of her head and we stayed there for a few moments before she suddenly tensed up.

"The Mukami's are under attack!" she cried.

"Let's go!" I nodded.

We teleported to mansion and found it in a huge mess; windows broken, furniture torn and destroyed and debris everywhere. She turned into her shadow flame form and slinked through the shadows to gain momentum to where the fighting was thickest; the library. I could hear a howl of pain in the distance and knew she'd set one of them on fire. I arrived and summoned a wall of thorns to defend Azusa from being torn apart from behind.

They gave me a side glare but continued fighting. I dodged an attack and threw a wolf at the wall with a large Venus fly-trap and it devoured another one. Upon seeing this they began to retreat but Ruka wasn't having it. She flew into the air surrounded by purple flames, and summoned flames in the shape of a dragon that hunted them all and devoured them all. After a gut-wrenching howl from them all, Shin Tsukinami's body lay in the middle of the room injured and struggling to stay alive.

Yuma was about to snap his neck but Ruka stopped him.

"Where is Carla?" she asked.

When he refused to answer her, she stepped on his broken shoulder blade, causing him to cry out in pain, and continued, "You're both being used by Karl, continue to defend him and the fate of you both at our hands will remain uncertain."

Silence. She looked at me, "Laito, do what you do best with him."

I grinned, picked up his heavily injured body and looked her in the eye, "Anything?"

"Anything," she nodded, "he should sing like a canary soon enough."

I teleported away.

Ruka's P.O.V.

"What does Laito do best sis?" Kou asked me.

"Rape and torture," I replied honestly, "they're his forte."

"I wouldn't want to be that guy right now," Yuma muttered, "don't you think letting him do what he wants is overkill?"

"It's their fault this war is happening in the first place," I replied, "we locate Carla, we locate Karl and we put an end to this once and for all."

"Why were you with that aristocrat?" Yuma asked.

I shot him a look and said, "That's my business."

"You were on a date?" Kou asked.

"And if I was?" I countered, arching my brow.

"Why would you date him?" Yuma demanded, "He's an aristocrat! They're all no good!"

"Am _I_ no good, Yuma?" I retorted, "I'm technically an aristocrat myself. And you're not exactly one to talk; the education you've received, the house you live in, it's all thanks to these 'no good aristocrats'. So, before you criticise my kind, make sure you've not been living under their thumb for the past century!"

I teleported away in anger back to the crypt I'd called home for the past century and realised I needed to get away from this. Laito would take a while to extract the information we needed, our mothers were dead or sealed away and Carla wouldn't make his move until Karl was ready and Karl wasn't likely to do anything anytime soon after losing Shin's power to his ranks. He'd regroup and think of a plan, especially after the loss of my mother. My blood was starting to boil but I pushed the emotion down. I needed to think rationally.

Blowing up at the Mukami's probably wasn't the best move, but them judging my life choices is not for them to do! Think Ruka, think! Karlheinz can only be killed by having his head cut off with a special silver sword. What sword would that be? And where would it be located? Knowing Karl, and how he likes to be a head of the game, he's likely to already have it in his possession, but if that was the case, and he truly wants to die, why not end himself already?

 _The experiments_. He wants to see his experiments succeed. Okay, so the sword, if it's in his possession and therefore, under high-guard, what _is_ it? Does it have a nature that can kill only him? What kind of sword has that exclusivity of power…? _The Leviathan sword_! I thought it was just a fairy-tale relic; but it's the only thing that fits the description. It was known to humans as 'Excalibur', but in reality, it's a demon sword that was forged in the demon realm to purge the hoard of vampires that threatened to overwhelm and over-throw them millennia ago before Karl negotiated a peace treaty with them. He is the last of a special breed of vampires that can only be killed with demon magic, but ever since the demons mysteriously vanished not too long after the treaty was signed, all traces of this particular magic faded away.

I knew what I had to do: I needed to go to hell and claim the sword. There was only one way I would be able to make this journey; Reiji's poisons. I changed into something more appropriate for the task I was about to undertake, before teleporting to Reiji's lab in the Sakamaki mansion. He was surprised to see me and, upon sight, started to throw silver scalpels at my person. I dodged and sent shadows flying into him, slicing his arms off. He howled in pain.

"Go join your whore in hell," I growled, snapping his neck and ripping his head off.

For theatrical flair, I placed it in preservation oil and placed it on the shelf before I perused his poisons. I picked up a particular poison that smelled of dragon's teeth and demon claw, incredibly rare herbs. I doubt it's complete since it was tucked away at the back of the shelf out of sight. I bit my finger and put three drops of my blood into it. It changed colour and began to give off an intoxicating smell. Down the hatch.

I lay down on the couch and closed my eyes, falling into a deep, deep sleep.

 **Alright, sorry for the delay. Next chapter, we finally have a conversation with Karl. Things should be wrapping up soon! Let me know if you're enjoying the series in the comments below.**


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